Wanderers
by MidnightHorrorShow
Summary: Together, two souls begin the journey that will mark them as lovers. At night however, the two begin to dream of a man whose power is unrivaled across space and time. Mostly SasuSaku, some IndraxSakura. Takes place after The Last.
1. Sasuke's Return

For the first time in months, he saw the sunlight.

Sasuke Uchiha closed his Rinnegan eye as he stepped out of a purple portal, slowly looking around before he began to relax. He had arrived in the right world, after jumping around a few dimensions for what seemed like weeks. He felt drained, something he wasn't used to having too often. After all, he had more power than anyone else other than Naruto. Being tired wasn't something he was used to anymore. Looking around, Sasuke noticed that he was a few hours away from Konoha. It had been months since the last time he had come home, seeing no real reason to come back that often. Or at least that's what he told himself.

Sasuke placed his hand on the hilt of his katana as he began to walk, letting himself get lost in thought as he looked to the sky. He had been, other than the rare return to Konoha, gone from the village on his journey of redemption. The Uchiha knew he had a lot to pay for: Letting himself be consumed with his desire for revenge, leaving the village, and even trying to become a dictator after the war had ended. He understood the weight of his actions now. At times, Sasuke thought he'd never be able to find redemption after all the bad he did, but in the end he always kept trying. He had to. It would take time, but he felt that eventually things would work out.

"I'll only stay for the night, then leave first thing in the morning," Sasuke decided with a small nod. "The less time I stay, the better."

Sasuke's focus returned as he heard a crashing sound in the distance. His left eye still closed, the Sharingan flashed into his open eye, scanning the area as he stopped walking. Sasuke remained silent for a moment before he let out a soft sigh, shaking his head as he began walking once more.

"MAR!"

Sasuke froze once more as he heard the name. This time, the Uchiha rushed towards the noise, unsheathing his katana as he ran. When Sasuke came to a clearing, he quickly scanned the area with his Sharingan. No sign of anybody being there. Sasuke was about to turn to leave with his Sharingan spotted blood in the grass nearby. Going over, Sasuke kneeled and touched the blood, frowning. "Still warm," he murmured. The Uchiha stood and followed the blood for a few feet until it suddenly stopped. Kneeling again, Sasuke only found a small note where the blood trail ended.

"Dear Brahma: Please come back soon, brother. I'm scared. It hurts. With you gone, he hurts me even more. Please save me." Sasuke read the small note a few times with an uneasy feeling, the edges of the paper wet with blood. Sasuke put the note away in his pocket before he checked the blood once more. It was thinner than he thought it should be.

"Blood, a note, but no body. Nobody here," Sasuke muttered to himself as he stood back up. Something felt out of place.

Deciding to check the area more closely, Sasuke began walking around the area, checking the places where the grass had blood on it. After checking for a while, Sasuke found only one more item. Seeing something shine in the grass a few feet away, Sasuke quickly moved over and kneeled once more. In the grass he found a small silver necklace, the pendent being the Uchiha symbol. Seeing his clan's symbol confused Sasuke. Despite this, it also piqued his curiosity. The uneasy feeling sank deeper within him. Like the note, he decided to keep the necklace, slipping it into his pocket before deciding there was nothing else to be found in the clearing. He'd examine the necklace more closely when he got home.

Home. For the longest time, Sasuke didn't consider Konoha his home. After all, how could he? His family was dead, the Uchiha compound empty. He had, in the past, tried to push his friends away, thinking it'd make him stronger. In the end, now that he could admit it to himself, it only left him feeling empty. So why was he going back to a place that had such painful memories?

Sakura Haruno.

While Sasuke was away on his journey, he had recieved a letter from the pink haired woman. It talked about his childhood dream and how she never really gave up on him. When Sasuke had first read the letter, it gave a painful ache in his chest. After everything Sasuke had done, all the shit he put Sakura through, and she still never gave up on him. Sasuke had Sakura on his mind a lot, even before the letter. But now he felt he had to return to Konoha to see her. And yet, he felt an odd nervousness. What would he even say to her if he saw her during his quick visit? He had been away again for a few months. Had she finally moved on? Stopped waiting for him? The thought made Sasuke feel very weird. The thought of Sakura no longer waiting for him...

"Don't be an idiot. You read her letter, many times," the Uchiha quickly reminded himself, shaking the thoughts away.

Reaching into his pocket, Sasuke pulled out the letter and looked at it. He had read the letter many times. Despite having memorized every word in the letter, he still kept it, reading it almost daily at this point as he made his way home. Staring at the letter for a moment, Sasuke couldn't help but smile, if only a little.

"I suppose we'll see each other soon, Sakura."

As the last Uchiha began to walk once more, he allowed his thoughts to wander, thinking over how things ended up. Naruto had fought him after the war, refusing to let Sasuke just fall into the darkness. Sasuke, before the fight, had even used a genjutsu on Sakura to make her think he stabbed her through the chest. At the time, despite his talk of cutting ties, he couldn't make himself kill the pink haired woman. He claimed it was because it wasn't worth the chakra to really kill her, and so just shut her up with a genjutsu. Thinking back on it, Sasuke knew that this was a weak excuse. No matter how far Sasuke fell or how much he claimed their bonds meant nothing, in the end Sasuke hadn't been able to kill Sakura. And even though Sasuke had been going all out in his fight with Naruto, even that hadn't been enough to break the ties he had.

Through the years, Sasuke had been a terrible friend to Naruto and Sakura. He knew it, and knew there was no point in denying it. He had been obsessed with getting his revenge to the point of being willing to do whatever it took. He had almost killed Naruto after leaving the village, and then when they met each other again he attacked with no hesitation. He would have, yet again, tried to kill his old team. If Orochimaru hadn't stopped him, he likely would have tried.

After Sasuke had left the village, things really only got worse. The Uchiha only had revenge on his mind, wanting to kill Itachi to avenge his clan. And when he finally did kill his brother? Sasuke learned the truth that Itachi wasn't as big of a monster as he had thought. Once having learned the truth, Sasuke's heart only grew darker and he had a new goal in mind: Destroy Konoha to make them pay for what they made Itachi do. Sasuke attacked the Kages and even killed Danzo. And, when Sakura and the rest of Team Seven showed up, he had wanted to kill them too. They meant nothing to him at the moment, his mind so consumed by pain and rage. He wanted to kill his old team. The entire village would go down in flames as they felt Sasuke's rage. How could the villagers act so happy, laugh and smile, after what happened? The Uchiha clan was dead thanks to Konoha, and Sasuke would make them regret letting him live.

Shortly after this, Sasuke had taken Itachi's eyes to unlock the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. The power made Sasuke feel untouchable. With the power of the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, Sasuke felt that he'd be able to destroy anybody that got in his way. In the end though, Sasuke ended up helping during the war. Of course, as soon as the war was over, Sasuke wanted to destroy all the Kage and the tailed beasts. With the power of the Rinnesharingan, and his Eternal Mangekyou, Sasuke was sure that not even Naruto would be able to stop him.

Looking down at his fake arm, Sasuke smiled only a little, knowing how well THAT plan had worked out.

But, really, it did work well. Naruto and Sakura, in the end, had saved him from becoming a true monster. If he had won the fight against Naruto, he knew things would have only gotten worse. Naruto and Sakura, never giving up on him. No matter how dark he got. No matter how many times he told them he didn't care about them, or threatened to kill them. He repeated this in his mind over and over.

Sasuke let out a breath as he looked to the sky, the clouds blocking the sun from sight. The more he thought about it, the more he felt his life was complicated to say the least.

Even as a child, Sasuke wasn't sure if he had been happy. His father always praised Itachi and treated him like he was the favorited son. Sasuke always tried his best, and yet no matter what he did, he always seemed to fall short, never getting the praise he so desperately wanted from his father. Whether it was shuriken throwing or trying to do the Uchiha clan's signature fireball jutsu, Sasuke never seemed to do anything right in his father's eyes. When Sasuke finally did manage to use the jutsu, the small praise that he got was the greatest thing he had ever heard in his life.

"You are my son, after all."

It had meant the world to Sasuke, hearing those words from his father. And then not too long after came the day that everything fell apart.

Sasuke asked himself, are there only painful memories? Sasuke's thoughts drifted to Sakura as they did so often lately. Even though at the time he acted like he hated it, now that his mind and heart weren't clouded by a bloodthirsty rage, Sasuke knew he had been foolish. Sakura had done nothing but show she cared about him, and what did he do? Ignored her. Insulted her. Attempted to murder her more than once. She too tried to kill him but it only fueled the feelings of pain in his heart.

Sasuke's ached as memories rushed through his thoughts.

Sakura crying over his body when she thought he was dead after his fight with Haku.

Sakura, when Sasuke went on a rampage with the curse seal, begging Sasuke to stop, the feeling of her arms around him as she cried.

The night that Sasuke left the village, Sakura begged him to stay, telling him she loved him. She told him that if he would stay with her, then every day they spent together would be full of fun and happiness. That being without him was like being all alone— being just like him.

Another memory, more recent, came to Sasuke's mind, making his heart ache with regret.

 **"I...I know there's nothing much I can do to stop this...But I still loved you! I never thought you'd turn out this way! I couldn't be there for you when you needed help...Or even stop you from going down that path. All I could do was just sit there and cry. It's disgraceful! But...But, Sasuke-kun! If I still have a place in that heart of yours, even if it's just a little...Please, don't go! If we're together again...I'm sure we'd be able to go back to those days..."**

Sasuke stopped walking. He frowned at the memories, staring at the clouds above with an unsure look in his eyes. How could he face Sakura? For so many years, all he had done is cause her pain. He had made Sakura cry more than he cared to admit. Tried to kill her, and had for years tried pushing her away. Could he really face Sakura? She forgave him, but could Sasuke face her when he returned home? If Sasuke really wanted to do what was best for her, he thought, he would stay away from the village, never return. If he stayed away, would Sakura finally move on and find happiness?

But she loves YOU, a voice in his head said. Sasuke thought it over and let out a weak sigh, closing his eyes as he shook his head.

"How could someone like Sakura love a criminal bastard like me?" he asked himself with an angry tone. Sasuke gripped his katana tightly.

"All I have ever done is hurt her...How could she possibly love me?!" the Uchiha screamed at himself, clenching his teeth tightly. Anger began to rise in him as he continued to yell at himself. "You don't deserve her love! How could you?! You've done nothing to earn it, and every time she tried being there, you pushed her away!" Pacing, Sasuke continued, clenching and relaxing his fist. "What could I even offer her other than a life of sorrow? She'd only continue to be sad if she was with me, wouldn't she?" His cries elicited no response from the empty path he walked alone.

It took several minutes, but eventually Sasuke managed to calm himself down from his breakdown, putting his katana back into its sheath as he let out a deep breath. "Pull it together, pull it together," he muttered as he let out a few more deep breaths. After thinking things over, Sasuke slowly nodded and looked ahead, slowly opening his Rinnesharingan eye. "She...She can make her own decisions. I can't stop how she feels, after all. I sure as hell would have scared her away by now if she was going to give up on me, right...? I...suppose I will have to face her. At least once, before I leave again. This time, I must."

When Sasuke Uchiha finally could see the gates of Konoha, the sun was starting to set. Putting on a calm facade, despite his earlier episode, Sasuke paused only briefly before letting out a final deep breath and stepping into the Hidden Leaf village.

At the gates sat a single guard in his booth, resting his head on his arms. When he felt the chakra of somebody entering the village, he instantly sat up, blinking at the sight of the last living Uchiha. Quickly wiping the drool off his chin, the man cleared his throat to get Sasuke's attention.

"Sasuke Uchiha. Will you be staying long this time?"

Sasuke glanced over at the guard, studying him with his Sharingan eye, giving the man a blank stare before looking into the village.

"No. Maybe. It depeneds, though that isn't any of your business," Sasuke finally replied in a tone that made him seem almost bored. "I'm here for...an important reason."

The guard watched Sasuke for a moment, scratching the back of his head before sighing and nodding. Since Sasuke's crimes had been forgiven after the war, the guard couldn't really stop Sasuke from coming into the village. As long as the Uchiha wasn't planning to cause any trouble, the guard saw no reason to ask any further questions and so gave the Uchiha a nod, watching for a moment as Sasuke walked away.

The first thing Sasuke noticed when he entered the village was how different things were since his last visit. There were many new shops, selling things like a few cell phones and computers. Sasuke himself wasn't sure why people found these new technologies so interesting, he himself usually sending his hawk when he kept contact at all. Free and easy. He himself didn't own a cell phone, finding them to be a little confusing and not worth the headache. Of course, he knew that eventually he'd have to give in and get one, but until it was needed he would simply stick to sending his hawk with letters.

The sounds of the village were different than he remembered, too. During his childhood, and even the last time he visited it seemed, things were usually quiet at night. But now, Sasuke heard voices from radios and televisions, people listening to music. Pointless noise to the Uchiha, who enjoyed the peace of quiet.

Already Sasuke couldn't wait to get to the abandoned Uchiha compound where he could be alone and away from everything. No sounds or lights. Simply silence.

Making his way through the village, Sasuke quickly made his way home. He felt tired and annoyed, and his head started to pound. He was drained much too quickly, and so he needed to recharge. In need of some quiet and a minute to relax, he found that it seemed impossible in the village these days, leaving him with only the creepy Uchiha compound to hide away in. When Sasuke finally made it home, he stepped up to his house and slid the key into the lock, resting his forehead against the door. Sasuke froze when he heard a familiar voice coming from behind him. Instinctively, the voice soothed his sharingan into fading away and his eyes lidded half way.

"Welcome home, Sasuke."


	2. An Agreement

"Sakura." Of all the ways for his day to end, Sasuke did not expect to be visited by Sakura. Sure, she was the main reason he had returned to the village, but he didn't expect to see her so soon. Letting out a soft sigh, Sasuke turned to face Sakura.

"Sakura. Why are you here?"

For a moment, Sakura simply stared at the Uchiha before she frowned a little, crossing her arms as she narrowed her eyes a little, feeling annoyed by Sasuke's greeting. He had been gone, for the most part, since the end of the war over two years ago. She didn't expect a big greeting, but at the same time Sakura had hoped for a warmer greeting.

"Good to see you too, Sasuke," Sakura finally responded, unfolding her arms. "It's been two years, and that's all you can come up with for a greeting?" she asked with a raised brow, smiling as if she was amused. Sasuke watched the woman for a few seconds before he sighed and gave a rare smile.

"I've been a bit busy is all," Sasuke admitted with a shrug, the Uchiha crossing his arms as he leaned against his house. "I was stuck in a different universe for the last few weeks," he added after a small pause, not sure how much he should let Sakura know. He didn't feel like worrying the pink haired woman for no reason, and so quickly added, "but I'm fine, I'm just a little tired. Bit hungry."

Hearing that Sasuke was hungry, Sakura smiled a little and asked, "Well, would you like to get something to eat? We haven't seen each other that much lately, so we could catch up as we eat." Sakura studied Sasuke as the man simply stared and for a moment Sakura was worried Sasuke would refuse her offer. But finally the Uchiha gave a slight nod and pushed himself off the side of his house, standing up straight before he began to walk. Sakura followed at his side, her hands behind her back. The two were quiet as they walked, both not sure what to say to the other. Luckily, the walk didn't last long and the two soon arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, both sitting down quietly.

After they ordered their food, Sakura glanced towards Sasuke with a small frown. "So...where have you been lately?" she asked after a small pause, trying to get a conversation going. "What have you been up to?"

Sasuke ate some of his ramen in silence before he looked back at Sakura, staring at her quietly as he thought of what to say. So much had happened in the last few years, he wasn't really sure where to begin.

"Well...Okay. I've been traveling. Mastering my new eye powers. Just...just mostly traveling," Sasuke responded finally with a slight shrug. Knowing that was barely an answer, Sasuke soon started talking again.

"Well, this one time, there was this village I stopped in. About...six months back, I believe. Six...no, it was seven months back. Anyways, I had planned to stay for only a few days. Rest up, gather supplies. That sort of thing. Well, on my third day, this man arrived in the village. Called himself 'Katsu'. I didn't pay much attention to him, at first. Around noon that day, though, Katsu approached me. He said he recognized the Uchiha symbol. Said it was the symbol of murderers and liars."

Sasuke paused for a moment, closing his eyes as he let out a soft sigh.

Sakura was silent for a moment before she asked, "And I take it that didn't go over well with you, did it?"

Sasuke looked over again with a small smile, shaking his head.

"Katsu claimed my clan was the reason his family was dead. Something about tricking Katsu's family years ago. I wasn't listening by then though, and just wanted to leave before I...well, before I lost my cool. We both know how bad that can be. I told him to drop it, and headed out not long after that. I noticed I was being followed, but decided it wasn't worth losing my cool over. But about 30 minutes later, Katsu jumped in front of me. Yelling at me, telling me I'd be paying for what my clan did to his family. This guy...He really wouldn't just drop it, you know? I told him to just shut his mouth and to go away. But, in the end, he wanted to fight me." At this, Sasuke chuckled lightly and shook his head. "Even knowing who I was, this man wanted to fight me."

"Well...what happened? Did you fight him?" Sakura asked.

 **Sasuke glared at Katsu, placing his hand on the hilt of his katana. "What do you want?" Sasuke questioned as calmly as he could. "I told you back in the village, leave me alone."**

Katsu glared back in silence for a moment. "You're clan ruined my family! You really think I'd just forget something like that?" he asked after a moment of silence. Pulling out a kunai in each hand, Katsu glared more. "And now I find an Uchiha. You really think I wouldn't try to take my revenge?"

Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them, his left eye had the Rinnesharingan and his right eye had his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.

"Last chance to leave," Sasuke said, starting to lose his cool. Katsu of course refused to leave, gripping his kunais tightly as he rushed at the Uchiha.

The fight didn't last long, and when it was over, Sasuke remained standing, Katsu laying on his back as he bled badly.

Sasuke stood over Katsu, glaring down at the man, a twisted smirk on his face as he pointed his bloody katana at him. Laughing a little, Sasuke said, "I told you not to fight me. I told you to just leave. But you just wouldn't listen, would you?"

Katsu coughed up blood as he looked up at Sasuke, pure terror in his eyes. "P...please, just...let me go," Katsu begged weakly.

Sasuke paused then, tilting his head a little as if thinking it over before he smirked again and shook his head. "I gave you a chance, Katsu. I told you to just drop it. But when do you do? Insult my family. Insult me. I warned you."

With that, Sasuke very slowly pierced Katsu's heart, slowly sinking the blade through him until it was stuck in the ground beneath the man.

Sasuke was silent for a moment. "I didn't fight him. Katsu left finally," he said in a calm tone before going back to eating his ramen. Sasuke couldn't tell Sakura the truth about his slip up, knowing it would only upset her. He had upset her enough already for one life. Sakura nodded a bit and for a while the two simply focused on their food, eating in silence.

Sasuke, surprising himself, was the first to break the silence.

"What about you? Any stories to share?"

"Well, you might not have heard since you've been busy, but I started a clinic for children. After the war, there were a lot of people that needed help, so...I've been a bit busy with that," Sakura admitted with a smile and a shrug. "You know, I'm still surprised you waited long enough for us to make you an arm before you left," Sakura added.

Sasuke glanced at his wrapped Zetsu arm and stared at it in silence for a moment before shrugging, frowning a little. "I didn't deserve this, but I knew you guys wouldn't stop bugging me, so I agreed to it," he admitted with a shrug. "You guys slowed my trip down a bit, but...Oh well. The arm has been pretty useful I must admit." Sasuke studied his arm for another few seconds before slowly looking over at Sakura.

"Ah...Sakura, I think I should be going home. Like I said, I'm feeling drained..." Sasuke said after a small hesitation. He saw Sakura frown as he stood and turned quickly.

"I'll see you tomorrow right?" Sakura asked.

Sasuke nodded once before he looked back at Sakura, giving the woman a weak smile. "Sure thing."

When Sasuke was away from Ichiraku's Ramen, he let out a long sigh and shook his head. "Sorry, Sakura...I'll be gone before you see me again." Even though Sasuke wanted to see Sakura, he still felt as if it would be best if he left first. He knew Sakura'd be pissed if she caught him, so the Uchiha decided he would leave the same night after packing new clothes from home. Go home, pack, and leave. That sounded easy enough for him.

When Sasuke arrived home, he quickly unlocked his door before letting himself in, shutting the door behind him. He leaned against the door as he thought of all he would need to pack. "Just change my clothes and grab some supplies," he decided with a nod, pushing off the door and heading to his room.

When Sasuke finished packing, he turned to leave but stopped when a photo caught his attention. Sasuke picked the photo up and smiled only slightly. The picture was taken after the war, a month after the war ended. The picture had Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura standing together. Naruto had his usual goofy grin, Sasuke had a calm look, and Sakura had a small smile. The three looked tired, but otherwise happy. Or as happy as they could be. Looking at the photo for a second longer, Sasuke began to put it down but instead slipped it into his bag to take with him on his journey. He wasn't really sure when he'd be coming home again.

When Sasuke was sure he had everything he needed, he left his house and locked it up once more, resting his head against the door. "Well, I guess it's time to leave again." With that, Sasuke left his house and began to walk, heading towards the village gates. As he walked, Sasuke kept telling himself it was for the best if he leaved before he could see Sakura again.

"If I stay too long...If I see her...I won't want to leave," Sasuke pointed out to himself in an angry whisper, clenching his fists as he walked. "What good could possibly come from me staying? It won't end well for anyone," he added with a small nod.

Sasuke was so busy scolding himself that he didn't even notice he was being watched until it was too late.

Almost at the gates, Sasuke froze when he heard a voice coming from behind him.

"This looks familiar, doesn't it?" Sakura asked softly. Sasuke closed his eyes and took a breath before letting it out.

"Why are you here, Sakura?" Sasuke finally asked, making himself sound more annoyed than he actually was.

Sakura stared at the Uchiha quietly with a small frown before she shook her head. "Why...?" she finally asked.

"Why what? What do you want?"

"Why do you always do this?!" Sakura finally snapped, starting to lose her calm, her anger rising quickly. "You're trying to leave! Why?! You said you would see me tomorrow!"

"No...No I didn't. All I said was 'sure thing'," Sasuke pointed out slowly, refusing to turn to the woman. He wanted to just end the argument as quickly as possible, but deep down he knew that this wouldn't be a simple chat. He knew it'd end in a screaming match.

"What?" Sakura asked slowly and in a quiet voice. "Are you serious? So you just lied right to my face, then!" she yelled at the Uchiha, clenching her fists.

"Get off my back, Sakura!" Sasuke finally snapped back. "What do you want from me? Hm? You expecting me to, what, stay in Konoha and spend my days with you? My journey isn't done yet, Sakura. I still have things I have to do. Things I want to know. If I stay in the village, I can't do that!" Turning to face Sakura, Sasuke glared at the woman and added, "You can't tell me where I can or can't go, so just leave it be!"

Stepping forward, Sakura grabbed Sasuke by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close, glaring back as she shouted, "Get off your back?! How about you stop being an asshole for once?! I care about you, Sasuke. Why can't you just stop running away?!"

"Running away? I'm busy! I don't have to stay here if I don't want to. We're adults now, Sakura, I can leave if I want to!"

Sasuke pushed her away then, but Sakura held on and brought him down with her. As soon as they hit the ground, Sakura shoved Sasuke away roughly and quickly got back on her feet, cracking her knuckles.

"Then bring me with you if you feel you have to leave! I'm not the same weak little girl I was when you left years ago, Sasuke. I can help you, if you take me!" Sakura watched as Sasuke got up as well, the Uchiha brushing himself off. The two stared at each other in silence for several seconds, Sasuke seeming as if he was thinking over what Sakura said.

But finally, Sasuke shook his head.

"No. I'm not going to bring you, Sakura. It just wouldn't end well, okay? You don't want to go with me. I could be gone for months, or even years at a time. I'm not going to drag you around like that. It's better if you just stay here. Okay?"

The next thing Sasuke knew, he was getting punched in the face by Sakura. Having not expected it, Sasuke wasn't able to react in time, and so fell back from how hard he was hit. Sitting up, Sasuke wiped blood away from his mouth while looking at Sakura in a stunned silence. He never expected Sakura would actually hit him, and for a few seconds was oddly happy to have her react for once. Rubbing his jaw slowly, Sasuke remained where he was as he studied Sakura before finally getting back up on his feet. Though Sakura was clearly angry, Sasuke, judging by the fact that he wasn't knocked out by the punch, could tell she was still holding back. Wiping his mouth one more time, Sasuke activated his Sharingan and shook his head.

"I'm not taking you. That's my final answer," he finally repeated.

This time when Sakura swung at him, he ducked out of the way and grabbed her by the ankle, flipping Sakura onto her back before stepping back, placing his hand on his katana. Sakura was quick to recover however and was back on her feet in the blink of an eye, glaring at the Uchiha once more.

"You aren't leaving without me, Sasuke. I'm not going to just let you walk away and leave again. I won't use my full strength, but I'm otherwise not going to let you leave. You said you were tired, right? Only your normal Sharingan is on."

Sasuke let out an annoyed sighed before he placed a hand on the hilt of his katana, glaring at Sakura. "Sakura, just drop it and walk away alright? Tired or not, I can still knock you on your-"

"I'm not as weak as you keep thinking, you jerk!" Sakura interrupted and rushed forward, punching at Sasuke's face. Sasuke quickly hopped back, but Sakura kept following him, the pink haired woman attacking quickly. Sasuke dodged each hit as best as he could but eventually Sakura landed a hit on his jaw, knocking him down once more. Sasuke dragged her down with him and flipped her over him, knocking her away from him before he got back on his feet. The Uchiha quickly ran over to Sakura and pinned her down, holding her arms above her head.

"Sakura, just stop. You know there's no point in fighting. It didn't work with Naruto for the longest time, what makes you think that YOU can beat me into listening?" Sasuke asked quickly and quietly, leaning close to Sakura. Sakura glared up at Sasuke, but slowly smirked.

"Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe you're right..." she began before suddenly headbutting Sasuke in the face roughly, the Uchiha grunting as he was knocked off Sakura, his nose bleeding. Sakura quickly pinned Sasuke down, easily holding him with her strength. "Now listen, damn it! Why do you always try to run away?! You know I love you, Sasuke! Naruto and Kakashi-sensei love you too! People miss you! So why are you trying so hard to run away again?!"

Sasuke stared in silence up at Sakura, his Sharingan spinning slowly as he watched her for several seconds before he finally spoke.

"I don't want you coming with me, because you'd end up hating me, Sakura!" Sasuke yelled at her, his Sharingan spinning faster. "I'm not going to take you, Sakura, and that's my final answe-"

Before Sasuke could finish his words, Sakura suddenly punched him in the face again, busting his lip. Nose and mouth bleeding, Sasuke began getting angry once again. Looking up into Sakura's eyes, his Sharingan began to glow in the night, and Sakura suddenly froze, a blank look on her face before she slowly got off Sasuke and stood up. Sasuke stood up as well then, and stepped away from Sakura before she returned to her normal self.

"Did you just fucking brainwash me?!" Sakura screamed when she had control of herself again. Sasuke could see the anger in Sakura's eyes when she turned to him and knew right away the fight was going to just get worse.

"You wouldn't back off, so yes, I used my Sharingan on you, Sakura."

Finally, Sasuke's Rinnesharingan slowly turned back on in his left eye, the Uchiha letting out a soft sigh as he looked at Sakura, shaking his head.

"Look, Sakura, just leave, alright? I don't want to hurt you anymore."

"Then don't leave! It's that simple! You don't want to hurt me?! Then don't leave without me, Sasuke. You keep saying you don't want to hurt me, yet in the same breath say you still won't take me with you. Why? You said I'd hate you? For what?!" As she spoke, Sakura clenched her fists, angry yet wanting to give Sasuke one more chance.

Sasuke stared at Sakura, a frown slowly coming to his face as he thought over what he wanted to say. Finally, Sasuke sighed softly and turned away from the Haruno woman, shaking his head.

"I'm not exactly a saint, Sakura. I don't want you seeing...Well, if I lose control, I don't want you to see what happens," the Uchiha finally said, looking down, his tone slightly annoyed. Sakura watched Sasuke, surprised by his answer. Sasuke still struggled with his darkness?

Shaking her head, Sakura said, "Sasuke, I don't care. I can help you, okay? I promise, I can help you stay in control if that's what you're worried about. Sasuke...You know I wouldn't judge you. I promise..."

Turning back to Sakura, Sasuke frowned a little more before taking a deep breath. "I can't, Sakura...I...No. I won't let you see that. I've already disappointed you more than enough for one life. I don't want to fuck up anymore. So...no, Sakura. I'm sorry, I can't take you with me."

As soon as Sasuke refused once again, Sakura was in front of him again, slamming her fist into Sasuke's stomach. Sasuke coughed up blood, surprised that Sakura still wanted to fight, but quickly calmed down and gripped Sakura's wrist roughly and sent a small shock of lightning nature chakra into her arm, shocking her hard enough to make her move back, but not hard enough to do lasting damage. Sakura held her arm as she stumbled back but shook her head and glared. "So you're finally going to take me serious?" she asked.

Sasuke nodded once. "I know you won't just back off, Sakura. So you give me no other choice. I'll fight you if that's what it takes." Shaking her arm, Sakura nodded a little.

Running at each other, Sasuke ducked under a punch and spun around Sakura, roughly kicking her in the back to knock her away before he pulled his katana out and stabbed it into the ground. From his katana, a stream of electricity rushed at Sakura. Seeing the Chidori, Sakura quickly jumped up and out of the way. Sakura tried slamming her fist down on Sasuke but the Uchiha dodged, Sakura causing the road to crack. Sasuke rushed up and grabbed his katana as he ran by Sakura, heading outside of the village.

"Get back here!" Sakura yelled as she ran after Sasuke. When the two were finally out of the village, Sasuke turned to face Sakura.

"You're the one who lives in Konoha. I don't think they'd be too happy if you destroy the village trying to attack me," Sasuke pointed out, his Mangekyou flashing on in his right eye. "So I took us out of the village. More room to fight." Sakura looked around for a moment then glanced back at Sasuke, nodding slightly. "Unless you want to stop this pointless fight?" Sasuke added. With no response, he just scoffed. "Yeah...Yeah, I kinda thought you would react like that."

Despite his words, Sasuke simply stood and stared at Sakura, his Sharingnan studying her face quickly, the Uchiha slowly frowning. Why was he being so damn stubborn? He WANTED Sakura to go, but at the same time he was...scared? If she went with him, Sasuke wasn't sure she'd always be safe with him. The thought of Sakura getting hurt, or worse dying, gave Sasuke a pained feeling in his chest. Why couldn't he just admit he cared? Shaking his head, the Uchiha took a step closer to Sakura before pausing again. Sasuke stared once more before he kept walking up to Sakura, slowly, the Haruno woman staring, unsure of what Sasuke was doing. Sakura watched as Sasuke's Sharingans slowly faded from his eyes. Stepping up to Sakura, Sasuke stood silently for several seconds before he slowly poked her forehead, keeping his fingers on her as he spoke.

"Okay, Sakura. You win. I...will allow...you to go with me," Sasuke finally said, deciding to shut out his voice of doubt in his mind. "Tomorrow, we'll have your last day here. Then the morning after, we'll head out," the Uchiha added softly and gave Sakura a small, tired smile. Sakura simply stared, surprised by Sasuke's sudden change of attitude, but slowly nodded.

After getting over her confusion, Sakura blinked and then smiled nervously. "Sasuke, uh...Your face is pretty bloody. Let me help you."

Sasuke paused, tasting the blood and nodded with a small chuckle. "It seems you hit pretty hard when in a bad mood," he commented and wiped some of the blood away. "Here, you can come over if you want," he added and began walking.

When the two returned to Sasuke's house, Sasuke set his bag down and went to the kitchen, splashing the blood off his face. When he turned around, Sakura was there. "Hm...?" Sasuke asked.

"I can heal that real quick," Sakura replied and placed a hand over his lip and nose, her hand glowing green for only seconds before Sasuke's wounds were gone. Sasuke rubbed his jaw a bit then nodded, offering a small smile.

"Is your arm okay?" the Uchiha asked after a moment of silence. Sakura glanced at it then back at Sasuke, nodding.

"Sasuke, why'd you change your mind so suddenly?" Sakura finally asked, getting to the topic that had been on her mind the entire walk home after their small fight. Sasuke had gone from flat-out refusing, then suddenly he had agreed. Sakura of course wasn't complaining, but she sure was curious about the Uchiha's logic. Sasuke leaned against the kitchen counter and crossed his arms, frowning as he watched Sakura.

"Sakura...You do matter to me. You and Naruto, you guys...You did save me from going down a very dark path. And...well, the reason I refused in the first place was...I was afraid, I guess. You love me, you said." This just got a confused look from Sakura so Sasuke continued. "Sakura, everyone that's loved me is dead. I was worried that you might not be safe on our trip, I guess. I was worried...Well, that you wouldn't be safe, or I'd hurt you somehow. So I refused. But...I don't know. I do care about you though, Sakura. So I decided to stop fighting and just let you go with me." Sakura nodded once and offered a small smile.

"Sasuke, I promise I won't get hurt or anything. You won't regret agreeing to take me, when you leave," Sakura promised then laughed softly. "Anyways, if tomorrow is my last day here, it'll be a pretty busy day. So...we should get some sleep. Goodnight, Sasuke. I love you." Sakura gave Sasuke a tight hug before she walked away, leaving the Uchiha alone in the kitchen.

"Goodnight, Sakura."


	3. Last Day

When Sasuke woke up in the morning, he let out a soft groan and quickly placed a hand to the side of his head. Sakura sure hits hard, he thought to himself before sighing and lowering his hand, shaking his head. "At least the fight didn't get out of hand," he added out loud. Getting out of bed, Sasuke grabbed fresh clothes and left his room, heading down the hallway to the bathroom. After grabbing a towel, Sasuke stepped into the bathroom and shut the door, setting his clothes and towel on the counter. "A hot shower...Haven't had warm water in...weeks?" Smiling lightly, Sasuke removed his shirt, dropping it before he paused, his gaze landing on his fake arm. Sasuke slowly glared at the snow-white 'flesh', his Sharingan slowly spinning into his eyes. Seeing the arm, like it did at times, annoyed Sasuke. He saw it as a reminder of the monster he had been. Was currently? Frowning, Sasuke shook the thoughts away and removed the rest of his clothes before turning the shower on, setting the water to hot before stepping in. Sasuke let out a breath as the water instantly began to relax his sore body, the Uchiha resting his forehead against the wall as the water sprayed down onto his back. "Today is going to be a...very...long day," he murmured to himself. "It'll be Sakura's last day in Konoha for...I don't know how long. I'm sure she'll need to take care of some hospital business, let them know she's leaving. And I'm sure she'd want to say goodbye to her parents..." Humming in thought for several seconds, Sasuke thought over what else would need to be done before the two set out on their journey. "Kakashi...I can leave whenever, as I'm not technically a Konoha ninja anymore, but Sakura will need permission. So we need to visit him...Hm, and I have to see Naruto before we leave."

When the Uchiha snapped himself back to attention, breaking away from the thoughts of the day ahead of him, he shut off the shower and ran a hand through his hair, letting out a small sigh. It felt good to have an actual shower, the Uchiha used to simply rinsing off in hot springs or rivers during his travels. Drying himself off quickly, the Uchiha began pulling on his boxers when he heard Sakura calling from the other room, "Sasuke, I made breakfast if you're hungry. I hope you don't mind!" Sasuke paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. Nobody had cooked him breakfast since before his clan was slaughtered, so he wasn't quite sure how to respond. Though, the Uchiha finally cleared his throat as he pulled his pants on.

"I'll be out in a minute, Sakura," Sasuke called back.

Stepping out of the bathroom, Sasuke wore a longsleeved black shirt with the Uchiha symbol on the back with matching black pants, the usual outfit for an Uchiha. Sasuke supposed it was something from his past that he didn't feel the need to give up, or the man simply didn't care to waste time picking out various outfits. Either way, when Sasuke was done pulling his shirt on, he headed out towards the kitchen to the smell of cooked food and the sight of Sakura sitting at the table. The woman glanced up when Sasuke entered and offered a smile, seeming almost amused as she tapped the right side of her face. "You, uh...Got a nice bruise going," she finally commented with an almost proud grin. Taking a seat, Sasuke felt the bruise and let out a soft sigh at the soreness, though he didn't seem bothered by it at all. If anything, he was a little happy though he wouldn't openly admit it. Sakura had bruised him, something not many people could do with how strong and fast the man was. Although, Sasuke mused, he didn't want to actually hurt Sakura, so that might have been why. Still, though, the fact that the woman hadn't hesitated to knock some since into him was a little nice.

"Yeah, well, you hit pretty hard," Sasuke replied as he relaxed into his seat, offering her the smallest of smiles. "Anyways, you said you cooked? With what food? I haven't exactly been here recently. Any food I had would have been bad by now," he added, glancing at the plate in front of him with an unsure look.

"Yeah, I...kinda noticed that. Sheesh, you really should throw things out more often, you know. You knew you would be gone and all. Anyways, while you were showering, I went out and bought some things," Sakura explained as she set a cup in front of the raven haired man. "You look tired, so here, some coffee."

Sasuke mumbled a thanks as he sipped the coffee, the man staring at Sakura with a strange look in his eyes. When Sasuke wouldn't look away, Sakura frowned a bit. "What? Is there something on my face?" the Haruno questioned, placing a hand on one cheek. Sasuke lowered his coffee and stared for several more seconds before slowly shaking his head, setting the cup down.

"No. It's not that. I'm just wondering...are you SURE you want to go? I don't really know when we'll be stopping back here again, so you could be gone for quite some time," Sasuke finally explained. "I don't want you to end up regretting your choice, Sakura. So are you absolutely sure of this?"

Instead of replying right away, Sakura placed her hand on his bruised cheek and began to heal him. When she began to use her chakra to heal, however, Sasuke's vision blurred before suddenly everything went black. Slowly, Sasuke saw a woman appear before him, the woman's hand glowing as if she were healing someone. As quickly as the vision came it ended, and when Sasuke's focus returned he saw Sakura giving him a confused look, the woman's hand still on his cheek though she was done healing him.

"Sasuke? Did you hear me?" Sakura repeated softly and Sasuke frowned a bit, pulling away from her touch as he looked around.

"Did you see her?" the Uchiha questioned.

"Uh...Sasuke, we're the only ones here. What are you talking about?"

"I just...There was a woman just a second ago. Long black hair, down to her feet. Black and red robes...it had the same symbols as the Sage we met during the war," Sasuke said slowly. Sakura frowned and slowly shook her head.

"Sasuke, you zoned out for only a second. There was nobody here but us. Maybe you should go back to sleep..."

"No, I'm...I'm fine. Anyways...What were you saying? Are you sure you wish to go with me?"

Sakura stared at the man before her, frowning as she studied him with worry in her emerald orbs. She wanted to say more about his sudden vision, but didn't want to bother him. Instead, Sakura nodded a bit and gave him a soft smile.

"Sasuke...You know how I feel. I have loved you for as long as I can remember. I told you, I want to go with you, no matter where the journey takes us. I don't want you to be alone anymore, okay?"

Her words made Sasuke pause, getting an odd feeling in his chest. Though he wasn't the best with these situations, Sakura's words did make him feel happy. Wanting to show that he did care, in the best way he could, the Uchiha reached forward and tapped his index and middle fingers against her forehead, offering a soft smile. "Thank you," he murmured. The two held that position for several seconds, Sakura's cheeks turning a pink shade, until Sasuke was the first to break the silence. Lowering his hand, Sasuke finished his coffee before clearing his throat. "Today is your last day in Konoha, then. I...will try to make it a good day, for you," Sasuke promised as he stood, Sakura joining him seconds later. "We should head to the hospital first so you can take care of things there, let them know you won't be back for a while." As Sasuke spoke, he made a single handsign, a clone appearing next to him. Sakura stared at the clone, tilting her head a little bit before she glanced back at Sasuke.

"What's the clone for?"

"Hm...Don't worry. The clone is going to be taking care of something for me when we're out today. Just something I need to do."

As the clone walked off, Sasuke looked at Sakura and then nodded towards the door. "We'll head to the hospital now, if you are ready," Sasuke hummed and after Sakura nodded, he turned and began to walk, the woman staying by his side.

"This...won't bother you, will it? I mean, people seeing me leaving your house with you, they might get curious about us," Sakura asked as the two stepped out of Sasuke's house. At her comment, Sasuke paused then looked at Sakura and seemed amused.

"You can just tell them we're dating, if you want. I mean...You said you love me. And...I'm not...good with this sort of stuff, but I do care about you, Sakura. So...let people comment all they want, I suppose," was the answer the Uchiha gave the smiling woman before he looked forward. "Besides, that's part of why we need to go see your parents, right? I'm sure that'll be something they'll be...vocal about. I have a feeling your mother won't be very happy about...us." Sasuke glanced at Sakura again, studying the woman with his Sharingan eyes. It felt nice to admit that he cared and even felt good having her by his side. Perhaps their journey together wouldn't be so bad, Sasuke thought with a soft sigh.

As the two walked from the Uchiha Compound heading towards the hospital, Sakura stayed close by Sakura's side, the two getting looks as they walked together. Some whispered questions to each other, and others just seemed confused to see the last Uchiha with the Haruno woman. Sasuke didn't quite like the stares, but he kept quieit about it and as they got closer to the hospital, Sasuke cleared his throat and glanced down at Sakura. "Sakura, what all do you need to do at the hospital?"

"Huh? Oh, I'll likely need to ask Ino to take charge for me while I'm gone. She's gotten good enough since the end of the war that I'd feel fine leaving her in charge while we're away. But...Also...Sasuke, please don't get upset, but...I want to do a mental evaluation."

At her words, the Uchiha stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the woman. His Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan and Rinnesharingan flashed into his eyes out of annoyance, the man glaring a little. She wanted to get inside his head? Was this some sort of therapy? Shaking his head, the Uchiha crossed his arms, a cold look coming to his eyes. "You want to give me therapy? That's just a waste of our time, Sakura. There's no need for that, I've been just fine so," the irratated Uchiha spat out, making Sakura's smile fade a little.

"Sasuke-kun...you shouted in your sleep last night," Sakura said in a gentle tone, trying to soothe his anger quickly before things got out of hand. At her words, the Uchiha's angry look faded slowly and was replaced with a small frown, the man slowly lowering his arms.

"Sakura...I'll see about it, but I'm not making you any promises. If I don't like it, I'm quitting, got it? I quit, and we leave the hospital right away, okay?" Sasuke finally replied in a harsh whisper. While it wasn't exactly the answer Sakura had been hoping for, she figured she'd have to settle for it. At least it was a start, she reasoned. She just wanted to be able to finally help Sasuke. Giving a weak smile, the pink haired woman nodded. Sasuke's anger mellowed even more and after seeing Sakura's hurt expression, the Uchiha whispered, "I'm...sorry, that I snapped at you, Sakura." Hearing him apologize, a rare thing for the Uchiha, Sakura's mood lifted once more and she gave a more genuine smile before she nodded and began walking once more, the Uchiha soon joining by her side. "Hey...maybe it won't be so bad, right...?" Sasuke asked.

15 minutes. That's all it took at the hospital before the therapist Sakura tried getting Sasuke to see came out of the room. Sasuke could be heard in the background shouting, "You can fuck off with your mindgames!" The therapist, a woman named Yumi, looked at Sakura as she adjusted her glasses.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Haruno, but I'm not...I'm not going back in there," Yumi whispered before quickly walking away. Sakura stared at the door in silence for a moment before she slowly pushed it open and stepped in, shutting the door behind her.

"If you're back for more, you can fuck o-" Sasuke began but cut off when he saw who had entered. Frowning, he shook his head and stood up. "I'm not doing this. I'm sorry, but this is a waste of our time, Sakura!" Sasuke shouted. Sakura could tell the man was clearly upset and not just angry. What had Yumi tried getting him to talk about? Frowning, Sakura stepped forward slowly and gently placed a hand on Sasuke's cheek.

"Shh, Sasuke. Look, if I promise to do this, will you agree to a mental evaluation? I swear on my life I won't tell anyone what I find out." Sasuke stared at the woman in silence for several seconds before he slowly sat back down and looked away. Though he hadn't verbally agreed, Sasuke's actions gave Sakura the answer she needed.

When Sakura was finally done, she sat across from Sasuke and frowned a little. "Well...? How bad am I?" Sasuke finally asked her, breaking the tense silence.

Taking a breath, Sakura shook her head a bit before sighing.

"Well...You seem to be an antisocial sociopath with post traumatic stress disorder and a bit of a sadistic streak. You also seem to have suffered multiple psychotic breaks since the time of your clan's massacre and seem to not understand the concept of compassion while consistently displaying homcidal tendencies, not unlike a psychopath. However, you do have quite a bit of activity in your frontal and temperal lobes. You also seem to care quite a bit about certain people...So it isn't that you can't. Your mental illnesses are entirely situational and surprisingly there is hope in that," Sakura explained in a calming, gentle voice, not wanting to upset the Uchiha. Sasuke sat in silence as she explained and after several quiet minutes Sasuke looked at Sakura and forced a smile.

"You helped me once, you can help me again right? After all...You saved me from darkness. I...Trust you," Sasuke whispered softly before going silent again. Sakura smiled weakly and stood up, Sasuke joining her with only a small hesitation.

"We need to go see Ino now, alright?" Sakura asked gently. Sasuke nodded and tapped her forehead gently, chuckling softly.

"Relax, Sakura...You don't need to seem so worried. I'm fine, you know...Anyways, let's go see Ino so we can leave here. We'll see Kakashi next, since you need permission from him to leave the village."

Sakura nodded and pulled out her phone, the medical ninja quickly calling her longtime friend.

"Hey, Forehead, what's up?" Ino greeted when she picked up. Sasuke couldn't tell what was said, but by the way Sakura's eye twitched he figured Ino was just being...well, Ino.

"Piggy, we need to talk in person. It's, well, pretty damn important. Could you meet us in room 208?"

"...'Us'? Who's 'us'? Who's with you?"

"Ino, we're kiiiinda busy, so can you please just come up? I promise to explain when you get here."

"Fine, fine, sheesh. I'll be up in a few minutes."

With the call done, Sakura put her phone away and looked back at Sasuke, the Uchiha offering a smile. "She'll be here soon."

When Ino arrived, she let herself in and greeted Sakura with "Hey Forehead, what's so important you had to..." Trailing off when she saw Sasuke, Ino blinked a bit before glancing back at Sakura. "Alright, why are the two of you together?"

Sasuke stepped forward and moved himself behind Sakura, hesitating before he hugged her. It was a little weird for him but he pushed the feelings away and looked at Ino.

"Hm, hello Ino. Sakura and I are going to be leaving the village together. Well, it was SUPPOSED to be just me..." Sasuke paused to hug a little more. "But, Sakura beat me into letting her go with me." Ino stared after Sasuke explained, feeling confused as hell. Not only did the Uchiha just show up after being gone for so long, but suddenly he was taking Sakura with him when he left again? Not only that, but he was...hugging her? Ino glanced at Sakura for her to explain things.

"Well...Sasuke's telling the truth. He got home last night and I saw him. He told me he was leaving again after he got rest, so I told him I was going with him. He refused...at first. But after I kicked his ass- I mean, after we fought," Sakura paused to grin up at Sasuke, "he agreed to take me. Today is my last day in Konoha for...Not sure how long. So today we are taking care of a few things before we head out. Which brings me to my point..."

Sakura gently pulled away from Sasuke, though with great hesitation. She enjoyed his embrace, but needed to focus on Ino. Sasuke simply stood and waited calmly, the Uchiha resting his hands in his pockets as he waited. Sakura looked at Ino and grinned a bit, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Ino, while I'm away, I'm trusting you to take care of things here. Can you do that for me, Piggy?"

Ino just stared at her friend as if she grew a third head. Ino was being put in charge of the hospital?

"I...What? Why me?" Ino finally asked.

"Come on, Ino. You are my best friend. You're skilled, too. I trust you with this, alright? That's why. So can you do me this huge favor? I promise I'll pay you back!"

Ino remained silent as she thought things over. On one hand, the new job would change up her boring, sometimes slow days. Things after the war had been hectic, with so many people needing to be healed and helped. But now, two years later, things were finally starting to slow down and relax once more. Ino hummed a bit as she thought over what to do, but eventually she smiled and nodded at Sakura.

"Okay, Forehead. I promise I'll do a great job."

Sakura grinned back at Sasuke before smiling at Ino, hugging her friend before she pulled back to tell Sasuke, "So, you wanted to get out of here right? We can now, if you want." Sasuke, of course, simply nodded and followed Sakura out of the room. But as they left, Ino decided to tease Sakura one last time.

"Do you think you'll need to go on the pill for your trip?" Ino called out.

Sakura stopped dead in her tracks, hand still on the doorknob, her face slowly going blood red. Sasuke simply stood there, not really paying Ino any mind. To Sasuke, it seemed like a weird question to ask. But Sakura seemed embarrassed.

"INO PIG, YOU IDIOT!"

It took Sasuke several minutes to calm Sakura down enough, but finally she agreed to leave the hospital and stop yelling at Ino. When they were outside once more, Sakura grumbled a bit before sighing, hugging Sasuke's arm. Sasuke tensed at first but relaxed quickly and offered a smile.

"Sorry about that..." Sakura mumbled. "Anyways, do you want to go see Kakashi-sensei now? Or do you want to check in on your clone?"

Sasuke simply tapped under his Rinnesharingan eye. "I don't need to check on it. It's going fine, it seems. So let's go to Kakashi, then we can visit either Naruto or your parents." Sasuke briefly wished they could put off visiting her parents for as long as they could. Though Sasuke had played a big part in ending the war, there were still people who didn't quite like him still. After all, he had been a rogue ninja who wanted to slaughter the village. He could see why that might be an issue with some. Still, in his defense, he DID end up helping save the world. Sure, afterwards he tried to kill Naruto...again. Sasuke hummed a bit at the thought before shaking the thoughts away. He'd just have to deal with those issues when the time came.

"We'll see Kakashi first then Naruto, okay?" Sakura offered, knowing Sasuke wanted to avoid her parents for as long as possible. Sakura knew her mom didn't exactly like the Uchiha, thinking of him as a traitor to the village. Her dad, though, didn't seem to hold much of a grudge on Sasuke, so Sakura had hope that the meeting with her parents would go smoothly. Right, and she was the queen of Konoha.

As the two walked towards the Hokage Mansion, they suddenly stopped when they heard someone shout, "Hey, Sakura-chan! Sasuke? Long time, no see!" When the two turned around, they saw Uzumaki Naruto running up to them. When the hyper blonde made it to them, he grinned and placed his hands on the back of his head, happy to see his friends and team mates.

"Hey, Sasuke, did you just get back or something? What are you guys up to?" Naruto questioned as he lowered his arms. Sasuke let out a soft sigh before he started to explain the situation to Naruto, feeling a little tired already about having to explain himself. Naruto paused by the end of the Uchiha's story, glancing over at Sakura. "So you're going with Sasuke, huh? I'm a little surprised, honestly...I didn't think Grouchy would actually take you."

Sasuke raised a brow and looked at Sakura.

"U...uh, I mean, I kinda mentioned I'd make you take me next time you came back," Sakura quickly explained.

"Ah, I see," came Sasuke's calm reply.

Sasuke looked at Naruto then and placed a hand in his pocket, the Uchiha getting a serious look on his face as he spoke to his friend.

"Naruto, I actually wanted to see you before we left. We were on our way to Kakashi, but...I suppose you have good timing. Listen...During my travels, I came across a scroll. It had the symbol of your clan, the Uzumaki symbol. I kept it with me because...Well, I wanted to get you something. After all...you did save me from the path I had been going down. I know you did it because you saw me as your friend. I get that. I see you like a brother, Naruto, and so when I saw that scroll I thought 'Hey, he deserves this.' You know? It belongs to you, as one of the last know Uzumakis. And so..." Sasuke paused then, and suddenly a popping sound could be heard as he summoned the scroll to his pocket. Pulling it out, Sasuke held his hand out, holding a thick scroll. The scroll was red with golden edges, the Uzumaki seal stamped in gold in the middle. "I didn't open the scroll, I promise, as it belongs to YOU. I want you to have this, Naruto." Naruto stared in stunned silence at the scroll before he gently took it, holding it carefully. He wiped a few tears away and nodded a bit at Sasuke.

"Thank you, Sasuke. This means a lot," Naruto replied. Clearing his throat, Naruto put the scroll away and changed the subject, not the best at talking. "Anyways, just cuz you gave me this doesn't mean I'll get off your back about taking Sakura! You better not hurt her, Sasuke!" Naruto quickly warned. Though Naruto had once had feelings for Sakura, the two had grown close after the war and now Naruto saw her more like a sibling and thus had become a little protective of her.

With a dead serious tone, Sasuke replied "I swear on the honor of my clan, I will never hurt Sakura ever again and I will make sure she doesn't regret caring about me." Such a serious promise coming from the Uchiha made Naruto and Sakura stare at him, surprised by his words. After all the pain Sasuke had put Sakura through already in her life, he didn't want to cause her pain any longer. The members of Team Seven were silent after Sasuke's promise, not sure how to continue to conversation, but soon Sasuke said, "Naruto, take care, okay? After all, Konoha needs you now, with you being the hero." Naruto grinned then and nodded quickly.

"You take care, too, Sasuke. Come visit sometimes, okay? You and Sakura-chan are always welcome, you know!" Naruto gave Sakura a hug before he laughed and added, "Come visit soon, okay?" Sasuke was silent for a moment before nodding a little.

"I'll...try, but...this place...It's still a little hard being here, you know. But I will visit. Goodbye, Naruto."

When Naruto left Sasuke and Sakura, Sasuke let out a soft sigh and turned his attention to Sakura. "I meant what I said, Sakura. I promise I will never let you down again. I swear on my life." Sakura stared at the man before hugging him tightly, hiding her face against his chest.

"I know, Sasuke. I believe you," Sakura whispered softly. When she pulled away, she had to wipe away a few tears from her eyes before she smiled warmly. "Let's go see Kakashi-sensei, alright?"

When Sasuke and Sakura arived at the Hokage mansion, they were greeted by an ANBU member wearing a dog mask. "Are you two here to see Lord Sixth?" the woman asked them politely. Sasuke stepped forward and spoke for them, offering a polite smile as he nodded.

"We're here to get permission for Sakura Haruno to leave Konoha. We'd like to see Kakashi about that, if you don't mind."

"I'm sorry, but Lord Sixth is very busy today, but if you come back tomo-" The ANBU woman was cut off when the door to Kakashi's office opened, the man standing there as he looked at his two students.

"You can let them in, it's fine. If Sasuke's here, it must be important to him," Kakashi told the ANBU guard who nodded and flickered away, leaving the members of Team Seven standing there. Sasuke and Sakura stepped into Kakashi's office when he motioned them to, the older man taking a seat behind his desk, Sasuke and Sakura sitting in front.

"So, what can I do for you?" Kakashi questioned, glancing between his two students slowly.

"I want to take Sakura with me when I leave tomorrow, so we're here to get your permission. Seeing as how she'd be named a rogue ninja if she just up and left without saying anything to you," Sasuke explained in a calm voice, resting his elbow on his chair, placing his hand against his cheek as he relaxed. He expected Kakashi to agree, but his reaction wasn't what he had hoped for.

"I'm sorry, I can't simply allow Sakura to leave. For one thing, she'd be needed at the hospital. Not only that, but she's a powerful ninja and we might need her for missions. I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to say no."

Sasuke stared in silence, a look of anger coming to his eyes as he slowly glared at the Hatake. Sasuke wasn't exactly in the mood to waste time, so he glanced first at Sakura then Kakashi.

"Sakura has already put Ino in charge of the hospital. That's already taken care of," Sasuke began, voice laced with anger. "Ino is skilled enough, it sounds like, so she can handle that. And I'm more than aware of the fact that Sakura is strong. After all, we fought just last night. So I know. So why don't we stop wasting each other's time and you just tell me what it'll take? I'm taking Sakura with me, one way or another." Sakura sat in silence by the Uchiha, shrinking into her chair a little as he yelled at their former sensei. She took a quick glance at Kakashi, who went from a relaxed look in his eye to a more serious one.

"Fine, I have a few conditions if you want to take Sakura." Reaching into his desk drawer, Kakashi pulled a Konoha headband and set it on the desk, the cloth black, the metal shining in the light. "First of, I don't care if you aren't technically part of this village. Travelling with Sakura, you'd represent Konoha. So you WILL wear this whenever you enter another village, understand? I don't care if you use it as a back scratcher in your free time, but when in another village you will wear this. Understood?"

"Hn, fine, whatever. What else?"

"Second, to let Sakura leave for so long, I'm going to make it a mission." Once again Kakashi reached into his desk and soon set two books on the desk. "You will be taking these Bingo Books. As you travel, I'd like you to work on this."

At that, Sasuke narrowed his eyes once more. "And why would I want to do that?"

"Let's be honest, Sasuke. Your reputation isn't exactly the best. To convince the council, I'll need you to work on that. The more you work on the book, the better you look. The better you look, the better Konoha looks. Here, I'll make you a deal. If you can improve how people see you, I'll have the council start work on fully repairing the Uchiha Compound. Okay...?" At his offer, Sasuke's glare slowly faded into a look of surprise. While his own house may have been fine, most of the compound was still damaged. Glancing at the Bingo Books and headband, Sasuke slowly grabbed them and put them away for later use, giving Kakashi a simple nod.

"Thank you," Sasuke finally murmured. Kakashi nodded gently, knowing how important it was to Sasuke to restore the Uchiha Compound.

"As it stands now, not enough people would be behind fixing the place. But if they thought you were with us, they'd change their minds in no time. I promise, Sasuke, I'll do my best to get construction started as soon as possible," Kakashi replied but then sat forward in his chair, his tone becoming serious once more. "My final condition. I know I may not be as strong as you, Sasuke. But I swear to you, if I hear you hurt Sakura, I will hunt you like a dog. Sakura is my student and is important to me. I'm putting a lot of faith in you, Sasuke. Please don't make me regret it."

With that, Kakashi sat back in his chair and hummed before he sat forward and placed a passport on the table in front of Sakura. "This will clear you to leave, Sakura," Kakashi explained. Sakura nodded and put it away. "I'm very proud of all of you, you know," Kakashi added suddenly. "Including you, Sasuke."

Sasuke froze and looked at Kakashi in silence, confusing and surprise in his eyes.

"Sasuke, you had the chance to destroy us. You hated Konoha for what it did to you, but in the end, you chose to come home. You may not live here most of the time, and you might be gone for long periods of time, but you still came home, in your own way," Kakashi explained before he smirked behind his mask. "I have one last condition you must do if you want to be allowed to take Sakura with you."

Five minutes later, Sasuke stood outside on the Hokage mansion with Sakura, Kakashi, and a camera man. "You have to be joking," Sasuke muttered as he stared at an amused Kakashi.

"Sorry, Sasuke. But if you want to take Sakura, you have to join us for one final photo before you go," Kakashi explained, Sakura giggling at the look on Sasuke's face. The Uchiha clenched his teeth but moved over to them. Sasuke and Sakura stood side by side, Kakashi standing behind them. When the photo was taken, Kakashi's visible eye was shut in amusement, Sakura was smiling happily and Sasuke scowled at the camera, his Mangekyou and Rinnesharingan still active in his eyes. These gave Sasuke a dark look, though the Uchiha wasn't as angry as he seemed. When the photo was taken and the camera man left, Sasuke turned to Kakashi and Sakura.

"Can I take her now?" Sasuke asked, arms folded. Kakashi gave a nod and a chuckle and Sakura moved over to Sasuke.

"Sure thing. But, I am busy today, so if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work. You two stay safe, got it? Sakura, I'll see you when you return."

When Kakashi was gone, Sasuke slowly glanced over at Sakura and let out a soft sigh before he gave a tiny, slightly tired smile. "Now we just have to go see your parents so you can say goodbye, then we should head home. We leave in the morning, after all. We'll want to get our rest tonight." Sakura nodded a bit and once more the two were off, heading towards Sakura's parents.

When they arrived, Sasuke stared at the door and sighed loudly. "It's not too late to just skip this part," Sasuke said under his breath to Sakura. Sakura rolled her eyes a bit and elbowed him in the stomach before knocking on the door.

"You fought an alien chakra goddess during the war yet you want to avoid meeting my parents this much?" Sakura shot back before the doorknob turned, Mebuki opening the door. The first thing Sakura's mother saw was Sasuke, and instantly she tried to attack him.

"You have a lot of nerve coming back to Konoha!" she shouted as she punched at Sasuke, the Uchiha simply dodging the attacks with a frown. "Traitor! Criminal! Rogue ninja!" Mebuki yelled, each word followed with a punch that Sasuke easily dodged. To Sasuke, almost no ninja stood a chance of hitting him, and so Sakura's mother definitely had no chance. Finally catching one of her punches with his Zetsu arm, Sasuke calmly stared at Mebuki.

"If you are done flailing around, your daughter is here to talk to you," Sasuke explained in a calm voice, the Uchiha almost amused by the Haruno woman's attempt at hitting him. Sakura sighed from behind them and ran a hand through her hair.

"Mom, sheesh, could you not attack my boyfriend?" Sakura questioned finally.

"BOYFRIEND?! YOU'RE DATING THIS BASTARD?!" Mebuki screamed back, Sasuke letting go to move to Sakura's side.

"Knock it off, mom! Would you just calm down and let me talk?!" Sakura snapped back, her eye twitching slightly from anger. Mebuki glared at Sasuke as she turned to face her daughter but finally nodded.

"Fine, but if he tries anything, I'll tell Lord Sixth," Mebuki warned.

The three went inside then, Sasuke and Sakura sitting next to each other on the couch in the living room while Mebuki sat in a chair nearby. There was an awkward silence, broken only when Sakura's father, Kizashi, came downstairs to see what all the screaming was about.

"Hey, it's my daughter. And Crazy Eyes!" Kizashi shouted and laughed when he saw Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke looked a little confused by the nickname, raising a brow. "Your eyes," Kizashi explained as he took a seat near his wife. Sasuke realized his Mangekyou and Rinnesharingan were still active in his eyes from his earlier outburst towards Sakura. Chuckling a bit, Sasuke slowly shut them off, his eyes slowly returning to their normal onyx color. "Now, what can we help you two with?" Kizashi asked politely, the man having his usual grin.

"This rogue bastard wanted Sakura to tell us something," Mebuki muttered under her breath, her comment making Sasuke take a deep breath to keep himself calm. If he reacted, it would only prove Mebuki's point. And so Sasuke chose to remain quiet, simply planning on letting Sakura do the talking for them.

"Mom, he's not a bastard," Sakura began slowly, having to take her own deep breath. "Anyways, mom, dad, I'm leaving the village with Sasuke tomorrow. I asked Sasuke if I could come with him on his travels, and he finally agreed," Sakura explained, quickly adding, "But we're also going to be working on a mission for Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura held up her copy of the Bingo Book to prove it before putting it away again. The look Mebuki gave Sasuke would make most people flinch from the rage in her eyes, but Sasuke simply stared back in a calm way.

"Sakura decided she wanted to leave with me. I didn't force her, and in fact I tried to refuse. But Sakura can...convince people, it would seem," Sasuke explained, tapping Sakura's hand once. "Very strong punches," he added.

Mebuki shook her hand and looked at Sakura. "Are you really going to go off with some rogue?" she asked quietly, seeming almost disappointed.

"Mom, Sasuke came back. I know he doesn't stay here often, but he's with the village!" Sakura defended.

"If he's with the village, why is he never here?!" Mebuki yelled back. It was then that Sasuke spoke once more, his tone almost emotionless.

"Would you want to stay in a place that has so many bad memories? My clan was murdered because the village feared them and didn't trust them, which ended up making them want to attack. Instead of trusting my clan in the first place, Konoha has always pushed us out of sight and tried giving us as little power as possible," Sasuke pointed out, staring directly at Mebuki. "Imagine being the last of your kind. Left all alone, feared for your blood, with nobody there for you. You would have ended up just as bad as I had. I openly admit I left the village to seek the power needed for my revenge. I willingly went to Orochimaru, an enemy of the village. I had planned on stopping after I killed Itachi, but then I learned the truth. And so I wanted to destroy this village, burn you all to nothing. I wanted you to know despair. I thought it wasn't fair how my clan was gone, yet all of you went on as if nothing had happened. I hated your smiles and happiness. I thought, how dare they laugh? My brother had to slaughter his clan, sparing only me, because of Konoha. So how could I not hate this place? There was nothing but reminders of the family I would never see again. But Naruto and Sakura stopped me from going down a path I could never return from. I know you don't like me, I get that. Most days I don't like myself either. But I care about your daughter and if she wants to go with me, then that's up to her. She's an adult, so the choice is fully up to her." Mebuki began to protest, but Sasuke shook his head and added, "And if I do mess up, you know Sakura can take care of herself. I'm done hurting her, so if I mess up, I won't fight back if she attacks me. I'll take whatever happens to me." Mebuki went silent at that, frowning a little before she looked at her daughter.

"You really want to do this?" Mebuki finally asked in a softer tone than she had been using. Her anger seemed to die down a little for the moment.

"Of course I want to do this. I've loved Sasuke for as long as I can remember. Now that I have a chance to go with him, I'm not passing it up," Sakura replied with no hesitation, gently hugging Sasuke. "Sasuke cares, mom. I know you might not believe it now, but Sasuke does care." With that, Sakura stood up with Sasuke. "I promise I'll be fine, mom. And it's not like I'm going to cut contact with you and dad. So just relax, okay? Besides, it's not like Sasuke is going to go bad again."

"How do you know, though...?" Mebuki asked quietly.

"Because Sakura will keep me human," Sasuke answered in a serious tone before he and Sakura walked away from her parents. When they made it to the door, Kizashi came up to them and put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder to get his attention.

"Hey, Crazy Eyes, don't let anything happen to my daughter, alright? I don't know where your travels will take you, but...I don't want anything to happen to my kid." Sasuke glanced back for just a second before looking forward again, nodding.

"Sakura will be fine."

With that, the Uchiha and the Haruno left the house, the two staying close as they began to finally head back to Sasuke's house after the long day they had already had. As they walked, Sasuke's mood seemed to improve the closer to his house they got. Sakura noticed this and raise an eyebrow, wondering what had made the Uchiha's mood suddenly improve. Gently tapping his hand to get his attention, Sakura questioned him.

"Why are you in such a good mood so suddenly? I mean...I'm not complaining! But out of nowhere, your mood began to improve. Happy to get home or something?"

The Uchiha simply looked down at her.

"I'm just looking forward to our trip together," was all Sasuke would tell her before going quiet once more. When the two reached his house, Sasuke stepped up to the door and put his key in the lock, pausing to look at Sakura. "Well, actually, I have something for you." This got Sakura's attention. Opening the front door, Sasuke pocketed the house key and motioned for her to follow, leading her through until they stopped in the kitchen. Sakura stared quietly, first confused then surprised.

"Sasuke, what...?"

In front of them was a meal made for two, the meal having some of Sakura's favorite foods and some of Sasuke's favorite foods. Next to the meal was a single bottle of wine with two glasses set next to the bottle. Motioning for Sakura to sit, the Uchiha took his own seat and offered a smile before he began to explain.

"Today is your last day in Konoha," he began slowly. "I wanted to try making it a good last day. So I decided I would do this. My clone earlier? This is the 'something' I needed him to take care of while we were gone. I don't really know much about wine, so when we left the hospital I had my clone go there to talk to Ino. She said this seemed to be your favorite, so while we were out today, I had my clone...well, make this happen," he explained, the Uchiha trailing off at the end as he looked down at the food. "I just...after all I've done bad to you, and you never really giving up on me, I wanted to make your last day in Konoha a good- Sakura? Are...What's wrong? Are you crying?"

Sakura was, in fact, starting to cry. Not from sorrow or disappointment, but the fact that Sasuke would even try to do something nice for her like this, even though he struggled just showing he cared, made Sakura happier than she had been in a long time. Wiping the tears away, Sakura laughed and quickly shook her head, trying to stop the tears from forming. The pink haired woman sniffled and laughed again as she wiped at her eyes.

"Sasuke, I'm fine. I just didn't expect you to try something like this. Just spending the day with you was good enough for me, but then you go and do something like this..." Sakura smiled warmly and placed a hand on his cheek, Sasuke closing his eyes at her touch, unsure of how to respond. "This is more than good, Sasuke. This has honestly been a great day," Sakura promised as she lowered her hand. Sasuke opened his eyes then and glanced at the food briefly,

"I actually have another gift for you, Sakura, but we should eat first," Sasuke finally replied. The two began to eat and drink, Sasuke agreeing to try wine. It tasted a little odd to him at first, but by his second glass he seemed to enjoy it enough. Sakura grinned at him when he admitted this and the two ended up laughing, Sasuke grinning at her. "I admit, it isn't bad," he finally said after finishing his glass, Sakura nodding with a warm smile, the woman resting her hand against her cheek. Sakura ended up staring at Sasuke then, cheeks tinted pink as she watched the Uchiha male, simply studying him. Sasuke froze when Sakura suddenly leaned over and kissed the man, pressing her lips gently to his. The moment their lips touched, both of then suddenly froze, seeming zoning out. For Sasuke, he saw the same mysterious woman he had seen earlier, the woman in the black and red robes. For Sakura, though, she saw a man. The man was around the height of Sasuke with long, wild reddish-brown hair, the man wearing white robes with black symbols of the Sage. The man stared at Sakura with an intense gaze, his eyes hardened yet caring. Just as soon as the visions came to them it ended, and Sakura pulled away from Sasuke, sitting back in her chair as she stared at the Uchiha in front of her. There was a name on Sakura's mind, the name of the man from the vision, though it was quickly fading from her mind. The two stared at each other, Sasuke seeming almost uncomfortable over what happened.

"I...I'm sorry, Sasuke," Sakura whispered. "I just...couldn't resist. I mean...you know how I feel, and after this surprise and all..." the pink haired woman tried to explain, but Sasuke just shook his head a bit.

"It's...fine, Sakura," Sasuke replied after a moment, feeling a little dizzy suddenly as he watched her, his Sharingan forming in his eyes out of instinct. "Uh...Oh, right. Sakura, I had something I wanted to give to you, actually. Could you wait here for a moment?" The Uchiha finally asked when the shock wore off. After Sakura nodded a bit, Sasuke got up and walked away to his room, leaving Sakura to sit alone. Sakura stared down at her food, feeling embarrassed but looked up when Sasuke returned a few minutes later, the Uchiha having his right hand in his pocket. "When you are done eating," was all Sasuke said as he sat back down.

"Sasuke, uhm...can I ask something? About...your clan?" Sakura whispered several seconds later, unable to look at Sasuke due to feeling worried he would get angry or upset. Sasuke stared at the woman for a moment before he sighed softly and nodded.

"Yes, Sakura?"

"Why...Why do you want to fix the rest of the Uchiha Compound? I mean...I get it, it's your home and all. But like, isn't it...difficult...living here?" Sakura asked slowly, choosing her words carefully in hopes of not upsetting the Uchiha. "I mean...so many people died here..." Sakura added in an even quieter voice, unable to meet his gaze. When Sasuke didn't answer, Sakura slowly looked up only to find the Uchiha staring blankly at her. "Sasuke...?" Sakura began.

"Please...Please Itachi-san, don't hurt me," Sasuke suddenly begged in the voice of a child, seeming terrified. Sakura watched with wide eyes as Sasuke stood and screamed as if in pain before his voice changed to sound like an older man. "Itachi, why are you doing this?! Why would you betray your clan!?" Sasuke shouted at Sakura, Sakura flinching a little but staying quiet. Once again, Sasuke's voice changed and the Uchiha spoke with tears in his eyes. "I...Itachi-san...please...don't kill me..." he begged weakly, barely above a whisper as tears went down his face. "Oh god...NO! PLEASE LET ME GO! PLE-" Sasuke screamed in pain then and held his head, shaking his head side to side. When Sasuke's screams ended, he just stood with his head in his hands, his voice switching to sound like his older brother, the man behind all the deaths Sasuke was reliving. "You aren't even worth killing..." Sakura, feeling freaked out by Sasuke's actions, shook the man by his shoulders before simply hugging him tightly. Sasuke became silent then for several seconds before he slowly hugged back and whispered, "The things I saw that night...what Itachi said and showed me...my clan dying...That will always be with me, Sakura." Taking a breath, Sasuke added, "Even with all that, I...I can't leave this place. It's all I have left of my family."

After pulling away from the hug, Sasuke cleared his throat and wiped his eyes with his sleeve before he looked at Sakura. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything...Look...I still have something to give you." Sakura seemed worried and unsure now but, not wanting to upset the Uchiha, simply nodded, though she kept a small frown. Out of his pocket Sasuke pulled out a black scroll that held the Uchiha symbol in the center, the edges of the scroll lined with a golden color. "This...I thought maybe you'd want to have it. It's the history of my clan. Not only that, but...It also explains how to do my clan's signature fire style jutsu. I...hoped that maybe you would want to learn it. If not, that's fine. I could teach you if you wanted." Sasuke held the scroll out to Sakura, the pink haired woman gently taking the scroll and staring at it for several seconds before her gaze returned to Sasuke.

"Sasuke, I promise I will read this entire scroll," Sakura whispered gently. "And...I don't know if I'd even be good at learning the jutsu, but I promise I will do my best to do it."

"I could lend you some of my chakra if you'd like. It should make it easier for you, until you learn to do it. We could start during our trip. But, it's late now and I had one last thing for us to do. Could you follow me outside?" Sakura simply nodded and followed the Uchiha out, the two slowly walking through the Uchiha compound until they made their way down towards the lake. Sakura paused when she saw a large blanket spread out in the grass and gave Sasuke a quick glance before looking at the blanket again.

"It's a nice night," Sasuke explained slowly, watching Sakura with his spinning Sharingan, "So...I figured you might enjoy sleeping under the stars." Sakura smiled gently and the two moved to the blanket, laying down next to each other, Sasuke staring up at the night sky. "I am sorry about my...freak out, Sakura. I hope it didn't ruin your day to have to hear that."

"Sasuke, today was a great day. I'm sorry for even asking about why you stay. It's my fault you freaked out. Just...let's just enjoy the rest of the night. We leave in the morning, right?"

"As soon as we're ready in the morning, yes," Sasuke agreed.

As the two studied the stars, Sakura gently hugged Sasuke. "Thank you for making my last day so great," Sakura mumbled softly. From the long day they had, plus the wine Sakura drank, she suddenly realized just how tired she was. A full belly didn't help things, either. Sasuke simply stared at the stars for a while before he looked over, his Sharingan glowing in the dark.

"Good night, Sakura," Sasuke mumbled as his eyes slowly shut.

"Good night, Sasuke...I love you..." Sakura mumbled back, smiling as she drifted off to sleep.


	4. The Gift

When Sasuke woke up the next morning, the Uchiha stared in silence as Sakura remained asleep, studying her with his Sharingan. Though he wanted to let her sleep, he also knew that leaving sooner than later would be for the best. If they were to be distracted, it would only set them back, Sasuke reasoned. After allowing the woman to sleep for a few more seconds, Sasuke cleared his throat as he sat up. "Sakura," Sasuke began, staring once more, his Sharingan spinning. "We have to leave soon," Sasuke explained. Sakura hummed softly as she opened her eyes, glancing up at Sasuke. She stared, as if confused, but soon nodded and rubbed the sleep from her eyes and sat up.

"Right," Sakura murmured as she stretched, groaning softly as she cracked her back. "That was very relaxing," Sakura spoke up. When Sasuke glanced over, Sakura smiled and explained, "Sleeping under the stars, I mean." Sasuke gave a nod as he helped her up.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"After we get ready, we can head out," Sasuke said as he carried the large blanket as the two made their way back up towards his house. "Shower, get something to eat, whatever you need. We can head out as soon as we're set." Sakura gave a nod and offered a smile. After opening the door for Sakura Sasuke followed her inside and walked off to put the blanket away, calling back, "Eat whatever you want, Sakura. My clone picked up a few things while we were out yesterday."

Sakura looked around the kitchen after Sasuke left before she went over and checked the fridge. She looked at her choices and smiled a bit. Sasuke's clone had gotten a carton of eggs, a thing of orange juice and a small thing of bacon. Knowing Sasuke didn't like sweets that much, Sakura called out, "Sasuke, did you get any coffee? I could make some for you if you want." There was a long pause, the sound of the shower running filling the silence. As she waited, Sakura began to cook the eggs and bacon, humming softly to herself. She was in a very good mood that morning.

"Coffee would be great, thanks," Sasuke finally called back. Sakura gave a nod to herself and quickly made handsigns, the created clone moving over to begin the coffee as the real Sakura worked on the food. When the food was cooked, and the coffee was made, Sakura set them on the table and sat down, her clone popping into a cloud of smoke. Sakura ate slowly, her thoughts focused on the journey she and Sasuke would soon be leaving on. Where would they go first? What sort of things did Sasuke want to do on his trip? Sakura also wondered about something Sasuke had said the previous day. Sasuke had said he saw a woman with long black hair, when the only two that had been in the room were Sasuke and herself. "Who was he talking about...?" Sakura asked herself with a soft sigh.

"I don't know who it was, but I only saw her for a moment," Sasuke answered her. Sakura had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed the Uchiha coming into the kitchen. Sakura jumped a bit at the surprise before letting out a long sigh, offering a smile as Sasuke took a seat at the table. "I'll look into it, though. She felt almost...familiar, though. I don't know why," Sasuke explained before taking a sip of coffee. After setting the cup down, Sasuke stared silently at Sakura, working over in his mind how to explain the first stop of their trip.

"So...I have to make a stop and say sorry," Sasuke said slowly, clearing his throat. "I was a bastard back then and...well...I need to say sorry and make things better."

"Who is it?" Sakura questioned.

"Karin Uzumaki. She saved my life many times with her healing, and in the end I was willing to stab a Chidori spear right through her just to get to my target, AND tried to get you to kill her. So...I need...or want, to make things better. That's a big part of our trip, after all. Making things better, me trying to be a better person." Sakura gave a nod of understanding, smiling a little, happy that Sasuke wanted to be a better person.

"So we're going to go see...Karin, first?" Sakura asked after a small pause, a small frown coming to her face. Sakura didn't exactly like the redheaded woman, with how clingy she acted around Sasuke. But if Sasuke wanted to apologize and make things right, how could Sakura possibly say no? The two soon finished their breakfast and quickly washed the dishes before heading outside. It was a beautiful morning, the sun shining and the sky clear of clouds. The two looked at the sky for several seconds before Sasuke pulled out a small scroll and unrolled it on the ground. Placing a hand on the seal inside, he sent his chakra into it. After a small flash of light, Sasuke's pet hawk was summoned, the bird landing lightly on Sasuke's shoulder. The hawk was a snow white color, her wings having black at the tips. She was a little small, though Sasuke liked the bird because of how quickly it could fly. He thought it was very useful for when he needed to get messages delivered quickly.

"Hello, Natsumi," Sasuke greeted the bird in a gentle voice, a smile on his face. "I'm going to send you ahead to let Karin know we're stopping by," Sasuke explained. After writing a small note, Sasuke attached it to Natsumi's leg and the bird took off.

"New hawk? She's beautiful," Sakura commented, watching the bird fly away.

"I actually found her about a month ago," Sasuke replied, looking over to Sakura with his small smile. "She was hurt, so I nursed her back to health. I was planning to let her go, but, well, she seems to enjoy staying with me," he explained with a shrug before he motioned for Sakura to follow as he began to walk, putting the summoning scroll away as he headed towards the village gates. Though Sasuke had been upset the previous night, Sakura noticed that he seemed to be in a good mood as the two walked together. Sasuke was even keeping his small smile. Seeing Sasuke happy, Sakura couldn't help but smile herself.

"Any other new friends?" Sakura asked with a soft grin. Sasuke took a moment to think it over before he nodded, glancing at the medic.

"A new snake, actually. Naga. I've had her for a while now, actually. She had babies a little ago, actually, though they are too young to use in battle. Naga's saved my life a few times. She's a great snake." Sasuke paused for a moment before adding to explain, "A few people have tried to poison me in a fight. She removes the poisons for me, so no worries about any damage done." Sakura gave a small nod though seem a little uncomfortable about learning people tried poisoning the Uchiha. When the two arrived at the gates they were stopped by the guards on duty.

"Whoa, where are ya going, Sakura-san?" one guard, a young man named Toro, asked. "I haven't seen ya leave in a looong time. Aren't you supposed to be at the hospital...?" Sakura gave a soft smile and pulled out the passport Kakashi had given her, opening it up to show Toro.

"Kakashi-sensei gave me permission to leave with Sasuke-kun for a while," Sakura explained. Toro checked the passport before giving it back, the man glancing at Sasuke.

"You...uh...are leaving with the Uchiha?" Toro finally asked, seeming a little bothered. "But, doesn't the hospital need you?!"

"Well...I put Ino in charge for now. It'll be fine, I trust Ino enough to run the hospital. Besides, there's no way in hell I'm letting Sasuke just wander off alone again! I've waited this long, no way am I just going to let him leave again."

Toro took another quick look at Sasuke and frowned a bit. "Well...okay I guess," he finally said, nodding that they could leave.

"Bye, Toro," Sakura called out as they began leaving the village. "Tell your mom I said hi!"

"Sure thing! Bye bye, beautiful!" Toro called back with a goofy grin.

Sasuke paused mid-step at Toro's words and slowly turned to face him, his Rinnesharingan slowly forming in his left eye, his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan coming to the right. "Don't flirt with my girlfriend," Sasuke said in a calm tone. Only a second of looking into Toro's eyes is all it took for him to fall, Sasuke knocking him out with a genjutsu from his Rinnesharingan. Sakura gasped as Toro fell and glared at Sasuke. From her anger, the pink haired woman actually slapped Sasuke across the face.

"Sasuke! What the hell?! It was just a compliment!" Sakura shouted, clenching her fists.

"Flirting," Sasuke replied, his face already becoming red where she slapped him. "Would you relax? It was a harmless genjutsu. I've survived way worse than the things I showed Toro." At his words, Sakura glared a little more.

"Sasuke! He's, like, 17!" Sakura pointed out.

"So...? When I was that age, I was murdered by one of the strongest Uchihas during a war and found out I was the reincarnation of the man who created ninjutsu," Sasuke replied, crossing his arms as his eyes slowly returned to their normal black color. "Plus, it was a weak genjutsu. He'll wake up in around an hour. What's the big deal? I didn't hurt him."

"That man, Indra right? His name? The father of your clan? The man you are the reincarnation of?" Sakura questioned. Sasuke slowly gave a nod, Sakura's next words making him feel terrible. "Do you think Indra would be happy to know the LAST Uchiha was acting like nothing more than a thug?" Sasuke slowly uncrossed his arms, a small frown coming to his face as he stared at the angry woman in front of him. He opened his mouth to say something, but Sakura simply turned and said, "Whatever, I guess. Let's just go, Sasuke," before she began to walk. As they left the village, Sakura called back to the guards, "Let Toro know I hope he's okay. And if he isn't, you better have the hospital call me." With that, Sakura became silent as they walked, soon out of sight from the guards. Sasuke watched Sakura silently, the Uchiha still frowning at her words. He wondered, briefly, how Indra WOULD react to how Sasuke had reacted to Toro flirting a little with Sakura. Sasuke had to admit, he did react harshly. But, the old Sasuke would have simply killed someone who annoyed him. He figured a weak genjutsu wasn't too bad, but he could see why it angered Sakura. Sighing, Sasuke ran a hand through his hair before reaching out, grabbing Sakura lightly by the wrist.

"Sakura. You can't deny I reacted better than I would have in the past," Sasuke pointed out as Sakura pulled free from his grip.

"Sasuke. Let's just drop it, alright? Talking about it doesn't change anything, so why waste time?" Sakura asked. Sasuke opened his mouth to speak but Sakura cut him off by quickly saying, "Besides, we need to go see Karin so you can say sorry and anything else you feel you need to do. Wouldn't want to be late."

Sasuke gave a sigh but shut up, figuring it was best to just leave Sakura alone for a while.

The two had been traveling for nearly an hour when Sasuke's hawk Natsumi returned, the bird landing softly on Sasuke's shoulder. She had a small note tied around her leg, and as Sasuke walked he took the note and began to read to himself. The Uchiha soon gave a soft sigh and crumpled up the letter, a darkness coming to his eyes. Sakura noticed, and despite their fight she wanted to know what was wrong.

"What is it?"

Sasuke remained silent, a look of annoyance spreading across his features. Natsumi remained on his shoulder, simply waiting to see if she would be needed again.

"Sasuke? Hello?" Sakura repeated, tapping his bandaged hand softly to get his attention. The Uchiha blinked, his anger melting away as his focus turned to the pink haired medic.

"Wait? Oh, sorry. It would seem that Orochimaru will be at the base we're heading to. I was hoping to avoid seeing him, but it seems that won't be possible. I guess we won't be staying as long as planned," Sasuke explained, handing Sakura the crushed note so she could read it herself. "We're not far from the base," Sasuke told her, motioning to Natsumi that she could leave if she wished. The hawk took off, though chose to stay close, simply flying high above the two in case she was needed again. "Just...Sakura, be on guard, alright? Orochimaru may claim to have changed since the war, but I don't trust him at all. You shouldn't, either, or you could end up dead. I mean, he claims to have changed since the war, claiming he is no longer evil. But when I last saw him, he looked much younger, so he's obviously still stealing a person's body." Sakura gave a small nod, looking angry at Orochimaru's actions.

"So he pretty much hasn't changed at all, has he?" the pink haired medic asked.

"Not at all, in my opinion. He's just not dumb enough to openly cause trouble. He knows me or Naruto could kill him in seconds if he tried anything."

When the two neared the base, they saw a group of angry men at the entrance, the leader of the group shouting as he banged on the door. "Let us in, you fuckers!" the man yelled, banging on the door three times before he lowered his hand. Sasuke 20 men at least, each man looking ready to fight at any moment. Sasuke and Sakura stood still, watching quietly before the Uchiha gave a soft sigh, shaking his head.

"If we want in, we'll need to get through them," Sasuke muttered, placing his Zetsu hand on the hilt of his katana. "So I guess we better kill them quick-"

"Sasuke, could you try just once to not jump to killing as a first response? Come on, I'm sure just seeing you should send them away. You're practically a god, no way would they be dumb enough to attack you." Sasuke stared at Sakura with a small glare but finally just sighed and took his hand off his katana, giving a small nod.

"Fine, Sakura. But I'm not promising anything. If they attack, then whatever happens happens."

With that, Sasuke approached the group, whistling to get their attention. "I need to get inside, and your men are in the way. Any chance you can get out of our way?" Sasuke called to the leader, the man turning to face him, glaring at the Uchiha.

"We're not leaving until this snakeface fucker pays us!" the leader shouted back.

"Tch...What's your name?"

"I'm Kenji, why the fuck do you care?"

Sasuke stared.

"Well, Kenji, I need to get inside. So if you could stop screeching about being owed money..."

"I told you, we aren't leaving until this fucker pays us! We gave him what he wanted, so he better pay up!" Kenji yelled back, clenching his fists. Sasuke glanced at Sakura, getting annoyed.

"And what exactly is he paying you for?" Sasuke asked after taking a moment to calm down, not wanting to start a fight if he didn't have to.

"Orochimaru paid us to give him a few of the criminals from our village. He says he needs them for experiments, something about trying to make a body last longer. So we gave the bastard five prisoners, but he hasn't paid us, and that was over a month ago," Kenji explained, turning back to pound on the door again. Sasuke glared as the man turned away, his hand slowly moving back onto his katana.

"Last chance. I need to get inside, and I'm trying to ask nicely. Are you going to get out of my way or not?"

"I already told you, you deaf asshole, we aren't leaving until we get our money!"

With that, Sasuke sighed and looked at Sakura, giving a small shrug. "I'll do my best not to kill any of them," he promised her before he ran into the crowd of men. Once in the middle, Sasuke slammed his hand down, a surge of electricity leaving his body in each direction to shock the men. The jutsu only knocked out five of them, and the rest, now even more pissed off, turned on Sasuke, hopping back from him. Sasuke stood, quickly doing handsigns. Before he could use his jutsu, he saw Sakura rushing by him at the men. Sakura jumped up, slamming her fist down in front of the group as she landed. The ground exploded, sending men flying left and right, some crashing into the base with a loud thud.

"Hey, I can help out too, damn it!" Sakura called to Sasuke as she began dodging Kenji's attacks, a grin on her face despite the two of them being in a fight. Sasuke watched, a small smirk coming to his face before nodding and rushing in to join Sakura. The two split up, Sakura rushing one side of the group as Sasuke rushed the rest. Slamming his hand down, Sasuke sent a stream of Chidori at his targets. The men jumped to avoid the attack, and Sasuke smirked, doing a quick handsign. From the end of the stream, under the men, chunks of the ground shot up, slamming into the men. Sasuke stood, jumping up to come face to face with Kenji. He kicked off the man's chest, sending him slamming into the ground below while Sasuke was launched at his men. Sasuke threw his katana at one of the men, the man dodging easily. Sasuke used his Rinnesharingan to switch places with his blade, the sword stabbing into the ground as Sasuke grabbed the man and pulled him close. They fell, and at the last second Sasuke moved to slam his foot into his chest, slamming the man roughly into the ground. The man coughed blood, but Sasuke moved on after seeing he was still alive. Using Almighty Pull, Sasuke pulled his katana back to him and smirked as he ducked, barely dodging a barrage of shuriken flying at him. "Oh, shuriken huh? Let me show you how it's done, then!" Sasuke laughed and jumped back, making nine clones. Sasuke and the clones began quickly throwing their shuriken at the group, throwing fast enough that they were unable to dodge. They let out a yell of pain and fell, a few quickly getting back on their feet. Sasuke's clones popped and he rushed at Kenji. Kenji quickly did handsigns and a moment later let out a massive fireball, the ball of flames flying quickly at Sasuke. It seemed to hit him, but suddenly part of a nearby tree was taking Sasuke's place, the Uchiha appearing on what was left of the tree. He saw the flames were still going, and glared when he saw it was heading for Sakura. Sakura was too distracted with her fight to notice, and so before it could hit the woman Sasuke formed a Susanoo ribcage around her, the arms forming to catch the massive fireball. Sakura blinked when she felt the heat and looked behind her, chuckling a little shyly as she saw Susanoo.

"Sorry, Sasuke! Was a bit distracted! Been awhile since we've been in battle, huh?" Sakura called out. "Thanks for the save!" With that, Sakura rushed the last man in her group, dodging his punches as she stayed close. When she got an opening, Sakura smirked and slammed her chakra-covered fist into the man's stomach, sending the man crashing through several trees.

When it was just Kenji left standing, Sasuke motioned for Sakura to jump back, and once she did Sasuke summoned a circle of Amaterasu to keep Kenji from moving anywhere, the flames rising high each time he tried leaving the flame prison. With him trapped, Sasuke stepped forward, putting his katana away with a smirk. Kenji's men lay on the ground around them, some knocked out, some groaning in pain.

"Look, Kenji. Just leave now, and let us deal with Orochimaru. But if you get in our way again, we'll just have to beat you down some more. Do you understand?"

"YOU LITTLE PUNK, YOU THINK I'D LISTEN TO YOU?!"

"I said, do you understand?" Sasuke did slow handsigns before holding his hand out. Slowly, his snake Naga slithered out of his sleeve and towards the man. The Amaterasu parted for her, and she slowly began to wrap her way up the man's leg, tightening a little as she moved. Naga knew not to kill unless told, so she was simply going to scare the man. Once up his body, she stared at him, her eyes cold as ice. Kenji shivered, struggling against the snake but finally looked down, frowning.

"Fine, punk, we'll leave. But if we ever meet again, you'll regret it," Kenji muttered. Sasuke gave a nod, seemingly bored by the man's threat. Naga moved down and back onto the ground, moving up Sasuke until she was wrapped lightly up his arm. Sasuke offered the snake a smile, watching as Kenji and his men left, some of them having to use clones to help move the knocked out men. When they were gone, Sasuke watched as Naga slid back up his sleeve, the snake vanishing back to where he had summoned her from.

Sasuke stepped up to the door, knocking softly before glancing at Sakura. "If this doesn't take too long, we can keep traveling today. If not, we'll rest then continue tomorrow. I'm not sure how long it could take to get Karin to...well, to not hate me. After all, I did stab a Chidori through her then ordered you to kill her, and I haven't seen her since the war."

When the door finally opened, Karin stood there with a furious look in her eyes, growling as she spoke. "DAMN IT, I TOLD YOU IDIOTS TO LEAVE ALREAD-...Sasuke?" The Uzumaki's expression began to soften, but soon the anger returned. Without hesitation, Karin slapped the Uchiha as hard as she could across his face and began screaming once more. "YOU JACKASS, YOU TRY TO KILL ME, ORDER PINKEY HERE TO FINISH ME OFF, THEN AFTER THE WAR YOU DON'T EVEN BOTHER SAYING SORRY TO ME?!" Sasuke raised his hand, rubbing his cheek slowly to ease the pain. He was actually impressed at how hard the woman could hit when she was pissed. When Karin tried to slap him again, though, Sasuke easily caught her by the wrist, shaking his head with a soft sigh.

"Karin, would you just listen for a moment? I came here because I wanted to say I was sorry, and to ask you if you could maybe forgive me," Sasuke explained quickly, speaking fast because he saw Karin raising her other hand to hit him. The Uzumaki paused, staring at him with an unsure look. Slowly, Sasuke let go of her wrist, holding his hands up in a "don't hit me" gesture. When Karin made no further attempts to hit him, Sasuke slowly lowered his hands, offering the woman an awkward smile. It was hard for Sasuke to ask someone for forgiveness, but he really wanted to make things better between him and Karin. He knew how the woman felt about him, Karin making it very obvious when they used to be in the same team. Sasuke of course didn't feel the same way, but he hoped maybe the two could be friends at the very least.

"Can we come in?" the Uchiha asked after Karin stared at him for several seconds.

"Oh! Right, of course, Sasuke," the redhead replied, moving out of the way to let the two inside. She began to walk, motioning for the two of them to follow. They walked for a while through the dark base, the halls barely lit by torches. Sakura remained close to Sasuke, the Uchiha taking her hand to lead her. He could see just fine thanks to his Sharingan. When they entered a large room, Sasuke looked around, seeing a large table with scrolls and books laying around, the shelves in the room full of scrolls and books as well. Sasuke glanced at Karin, raising a brow.

"Light reading?" he questioned.

Karin smiled shyly and looked around.

"Oh, well...Orochimaru lets me study these when I'm not busy, so..."

Sasuke stepped up to the table, pausing when he saw a note on one of the many books. It was in Orochimaru's handwriting. Sasuke studied it with his Sharingan, reading it out loud.

"Karin, I've finished up with Mar's lesson for the day. I need you to clean the room and get it set up for later." Sasuke froze for a moment before reaching into his pocket, pulling out the small Uchiha necklace he had found the other day. He held it up, showing Karin, the Uchiha suddenly becoming very serious. Sakura looked at the necklace, looking confused.

"Huh? Why do you have an Uchiha necklace?" she questioned.

Voice serious, eyes cold, Sasuke said, "I found it the other day when I was coming home, Sakura. I find this, blood, and a note. And I heard somebody scream the name 'Mar'." Setting the small necklace on the table, Sasuke faced Karin, his harsh gaze making the woman flinch.

"W...What? I didn't do anything!" Karin shouted, though she seemed very nervous suddenly.

"The note," Sasuke began, shaking his head, "was begging for help. Said he was hurt more when his brother wasn't around. Want to explain what the hell that meant? Who is Mar, Karin?" Karin frowned, looking to Orochimaru's note on the table.

"I...I don't know, okay...?" she whispered. Sasuke slammed his fist down on the table, Karin jumping from shock. "I swear, Sasuke! I've never met this Mar guy! Orochimaru has me set up the room, and clean it after, but I've never met him!" Karin promised quickly. Sakura placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, holding him back as he took a step towards Karin.

"Sasuke, just take a breath, I'm sure Karin can explain if you give her a second. Just, calm down and listen."

The minute of silence it took Sasuke to reply was the longest minute of Karin's life, the woman's eyes full of fear at the anger Sasuke had shown. Finally, he spoke.

"Fine. I'll listen, but I want answers."

With that, the three sat at the table, Sakura sitting by Sasuke's side, Karin sitting on the other side of the table.

"The Uchiha necklace. Where'd it come from?" Sasuke asked, handing it over to the Uzumaki. Karin examined the small item, noticing it had some blood on the Uchiha crest. She frowned as she looked up, shaking her head.

"Maybe it belongs to this Mar guy? I don't know, Sasuke..."

Sasuke took a breath, taking the necklace back. He wasn't sure why he was so angry over it. Things involving his clan set him off easy, though, so he assumed the necklace was messing with him.

"Okay, and the note?"

"What exactly did it say?"

Sasuke paused to pull out a scroll that he sealed the note into and summoned it, setting it on the table. Sakura and Karin looked at the bloody note, Karin looking a little nervous and Sakura looking curious. Sasuke cleared his throat and began to read.

"Dear Brahma: Please come back soon, brother. I'm scared. It hurts. With you gone, he hurts me even more. Please save me." Finished reading, Sasuke looked up at Karin. "Know anyone named Brahma? Why is Orochimaru hurting this 'Mar' guy, Karin?"

Karin slowly shook her head, unsure of what to tell the angry Uchiha. She studied his features, his cold eyes, then looked down at the note.

"Look...I...All I know is a few times a day Orochimaru has me set up a sort of...torture room, I guess you could call it that. I hear screams for a while, but they always suddenly stop. When he calls me in, nobody is in there. Just...just blood. So I have to clean up after him, and later set up again when he calls me back. He doesn't say what he's up to. Just says 'perhaps this will be the one?'" Sasuke stood up suddenly, putting the bloody note away with the necklace. His EMS flashed into his right eye, the Rinnesharingan forming in the left.

"Is Orochimaru here right now? I want to talk to him. Maybe he can give me more answers than you can. I want to know more about this Mar person. And...if nothing else, maybe I can get Orochimaru to stop torturing for his little experiments. I usually wouldn't care, as long as he's not causing trouble, but this trip I'm on...It's all about me becoming a better person. And a good person wouldn't just ignore something like torture." After a pause, Sasuke looked at Karin, softening his gaze a little. He didn't come here to yell at the woman, after all. "I'm sorry. I just want to figure out what all this is about. Anyways, where is the snake?"

"He's...hm...he should be on the other side of the compound, in his room. He'll be there, or...try the training room. Likely at one of those places," Karin replied quietly, relaxing if only a little when Sasuke's tone became softer. Sasuke gave a small nod before looking at Sakura, offering the woman a small smile.

"Sakura? Do you want to come with me? Or do you want to wait here?"

Sakura didn't even hesitate, standing up to join him.

"Hey, I'm not gonna let you go see a monster like Orochimaru without backup," Sakura commented and followed as Sasuke began to walk. Karin hesitated, but soon she too began to follow, staying quiet as they traveled through the halls. Sasuke paused every now and then, looking around with a confused look.

"Did you guys hear that?" Sasuke finally asked after stopping for the third time, the Uchiha frowning a little as he looked around.

"Hear what?" Sakura and Karin asked, the two women looking a little confused.

"It sounded like-"

Before Sasuke could finish his words, the trio heard a loud screaming coming from further in the compound. Sasuke tensed, placing his zetsu hand on his katana. Sakura pulled a kunai out of her weapon pouch, gripping it tightly as she looked around, and Karin got in a battle stance.

"Karin, what is it?" Sasuke whispered, glancing at the Sensor woman. Karin closed her eyes for a moment before opening them, looking nervous.

"It...It feels pretty angry, like it wants to kill," Karin whispered back. "Whoever or whatever it is isn't happy." Sasuke gave a small nod at Karin's response, his Mangekyou scanning the hallway around them. He didn't see anything, though soon the screaming could be heard once more. The three looked at each other for just a second before they began to run, Karin leading the group towards the source of the screams. The three ended up in one of Orochimaru's labs, and once inside they paused, looking at all the destruction.

Most of the people working in the lab had been killed, their bodies covered in burns. The lab itself was mostly ruined, equipment destroyed, machines thrown around, the walls cracked with what looked like punches. In the middle of the room, Karin, Sakura and Sasuke discovered just what had been causing all the trouble.

In the middle of the room stood a very large creature, the beast standing at least 10 feet tall, standing on two legs like a human. It's skin was a black stone, with lava seemingly flowing between the cracks of rock. It's eyes glowed like embers, a burning anger held in them. A scientist tried to run from the monster, but it grabbed him, easily wrapping its large hand around his face as it lifted him into the air. The scientist screamed in pain as his face was being burned from contact with the beast, but his screams died out when the monster snapped his neck and threw him across the lab. Sasuke, Sakura and Karin dodged the body and landed near the beast. Its focus turned to Sasuke, the monster staring directly at him with a look of pure hatred in its eyes. It ran at Sasuke, its size causing the ground to crack under its feet as it ran at the Uchiha. Sasuke dodged a punch, ducking just before the hit could connect with his face. He knew a hit from a monster like that would do a lot of damage. Jumping back to avoid another hit, Sasuke shouted, "Karin, what the hell is this thing?" Sasuke let out a shout of pain as the lava monster grabbed him by the ankle, gripping hard as it slammed the Uchiha down. The force of the slam cracked the floor beneath him and Sasuke coughed up blood. Before the beast could follow up with a punch to Sasuke's chest, it suddenly staggered, a good portion of its torso shattering as Sakura slammed a chakra-charged punch into the monster.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HIM!" Sakura shouted, giving a spinning kick to the beast's face. Sakura's hit landed, knocking the beast back once more, its face broken as well. As Sakura and Karin helped Sasuke up, they stared in shock as the beast began to heal, its body soon back to perfect condition.

"This is not going to be fun," Sasuke muttered under his breath. The monster, once again, was staring directly at Sasuke. Without another moment of hesitation, the three split up, Sasuke staying in front of the beast as Sakura jumped to be on its right side, Karin taking the left. "Don't let it grab you, you'll get burned," Sasuke warned the women, Karin and Sakura nodding as they took note. Sakura rushed the lava monster, attempting to give it a mountain-shattering punch to the torso again. The beast switched its focus from Sasuke to Sakura, swinging its large arm fast enough to catch Sakura across the face. The Haruno woman let out a pained cry as she was sent flying into the wall of the lab, her cheek burned from the hit. Seeing Sakura wounded angered Sasuke and the Uchiha let out a snarl as he rushed the monster. It attempted to hit him as he neared him, but he quickly dodged and spun behind it before hopping up onto it's back. He covered himself in a small Susanoo armor to protect against the heat before doing quick handsigns. "Chidor-" Sasuke froze with his Chidori an inch from hitting the beast in the shoulder. In his head, Sasuke could heard a voice whispering "Don't use chakra attacks, it'll drain them..."

His moment of distraction gave the beast enough time to throw Sasuke off, the Uchiha grunting as he crashed into Sakura. The two quickly got up, Sasuke holding his head as it began to pound.

"Sakura, Karin, don't...don't use any Ninjutsu. It'll absorb the attack," Sasuke quickly told the two. "We'll have to rely on normal attacks like during the war, against Madara," Sasuke added. The two looked confused, wondering how Sasuke knew what to do but finally gave a nod. As the beast neared Sasuke and Sakura, it was suddenly stopped as chains began to wrap around its body, holding it in place. Karin struggled to keep the monster in place, her Uzumaki chains barely able to keep it from advancing on Sasuke and Sakura. Even so, it gave Sasuke and Sakura time to roll out of the way, getting up next to Karin. The Uzumaki released the jutsu, the chains fading from her back.

"Thanks, Karin!" Sakura shouted as she hopped at the monster, slamming her fist into its back as hard as she could. She hopped back before her hand broke through the stone body of the beast, drops of lava 'blood' falling from the wound. Sasuke put his hands together, closing his eyes as small Susanoo armors covered Sakura, Karin and himself, his katana being covered as well to deal more damage.

"This should offer protection, but don't risk anything if you don't have to," Sasuke told the group. He then ran in and began to fight the beast. The monster swung quick punches at Sasuke, but the Uchiha quickly blocked with his Susanoo-enhanced katana, even managing to cut chunks off the beast when he got an opening. The rocky body parts fell to the ground, turning to ash in seconds. Even with the damage from Sakura's punch and Sasuke's cuts, the monster simply kept healing. Turning its focus from Sasuke to Karin, the Uzumaki woman trying to lure the beast away from the Uchiha, the monster rushed the woman and put its hands together, bringing them down hard like a hammer at the redheaded woman. Before the attack could land, Sasuke was in front of the Uzumaki, blocking the attack with his katana. He struggled as the beast kept trying to push him down. Slowly, the Susanoo cover on his katana began to break before the blade itself shattered. Sasuke grabbed Karin and threw a kunai across the room. Before the monster could hit the two, at the very last second, Sasuke used his Rinnesharingan to switch places with the kunai. The kunai stuck into the beast's right shoulder, an explosive tag wrapped around the kunai handle. With a single handsign, the kunai blew up, causing the monster's arm to explode as well, his entire right side slowly crumbling to ash. Sasuke knew the damage wouldn't give them much time, however. As the Uchiha set Karin down, the woman blushed and stared at him, looking surprised.

"Y...you...saved me?" she whispered. The Uzumaki couldn't help but feel surprised. Before the war, Sasuke had impaled her on a Chidori spear just to get to his target. He called her a burden when Danzo grabbed her as a human shield, saying she was of no use to him anymore if she could get captured so easily. And yet here the Uchiha was, just two years after the war, saving her life without hesitation. It seemed the Uchiha really had been trying to change.

"Of course I saved you. I'd be a monster to just let you die," Sasuke replied. "But listen, we need to try getting this monster outside, then attack it with everything we have. When it's weakened enough, I'm going to try to open a portal to trap it in another dimension," Sasuke explained quickly. "It seems to keep targeting me, so lets get its attention." Karin and Sakura nodded and ran from the room. Sasuke stayed behind, wanting to lead the monster out. When the lava monster's body had healed once more, Sasuke threw a simple kunai at it to get its attention. The monster turned to Sasuke and glared before dashing for the Uchiha. Sasuke turned quickly and began running as well, looking behind him every now and then to check if the monster was following. It was, and was even gaining on Sasuke, the tall beast letting out a loud scream of pure rage. Sasuke quickly turned a corner, the beast crashing into the wall before it continued chasing the Uchiha. Down the hall, Sasuke could see a large opening, Sakura and Karin standing by it.

"Sasuke, out this way!" Sakura shouted.

"Hurry! It's right behind you!" Karin added.

Sasuke nodded to himself before he focused chakra to his feet, crouching low before he pushed off the ground, launching himself the rest of the way down the hallway. Sasuke, Sakura and Karin quickly ran outside, jumping back from the compound just as the monster exited as well. Sasuke motioned to Karin and Sakura, a serious look on his face.

"Alright, you two. Let's end this quick before one of us gets really hurt, or ends up dead," Sasuke said calmly. Sakura gave a nod, the seal on her forehead activating and spreading. Karin focused, the chakra chains coming from her once more. And finally, Sasuke pulled out a kunai, his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan and Rinnesharingan burning with determination. "If we don't stop this thing, it might get away and hurt others...so lets finish this." With that, the three rushed the lava monster. Karin dodged a kick from the beast, sliding past it and behind it. As it tried to swing a punch at Sasuke, Karin quickly shot her chains out, wrapping them around the monster's arm, holding it in place. Sakura jumped far back, landing on the palm of a small Susanoo hand. With all its power, the Susanoo launched Sakura at the monster, Sakura focusing all of her power into her punch. When it hit, the monster stood still at first as if nothing happened. But then slowly it began to crumble, slowly falling to the grass as ash. Karin, Sasuke and Sakura stared for a moment, Sasuke studying the beast's ash remains with his Rinnesharingan.

Sasuke's eyes slowly widened as the beast began very slowly reforming. First the legs reformed, then the torso, one arm at a time before finally the head reformed from the ashes. Not only was the beast reformed, but it stared at Sasuke with a look so angry it sent chills down the Uchiha's spine. As he watched, the beast opened its mouth wide. Eyes widening more, Sasuke shouted, "Sakura! Karin! Move!" A moment later, the monster began to spit lava as if doing a fire style jutsu. Sasuke, not having any time to come up with a plan, did the only thing he could do. Using his Rinnesharingan, Sasuke switched places with the women, shielding himself with a dense Susanoo ribcage. Despite the protection, Sasuke was still seriously wounded, the Uchiha screaming in pain as the left side of his face, his chest and right arm were burned badly. As Sasuke fell to his knees, the Susanoo shield faded away and Sasuke could barely stay up, having trouble breathing because of the pain he felt. The lava monster looked down at the young man, simply watching him for a moment before it reached down. Gripping Sasuke by the throat, it lifted Sasuke, starting to choke him without any hesitation. Sasuke struggled weakly, being burned more, his vision slowly going blurry as he started to run out of oxygen.

Before he passed out, however, a large white snake wrapped tightly around the monster's arm, tightening until it crushed it, the arm becoming ash. Sasuke fell, coughing and wheezing for air as he held his throat. Looking up, Sasuke saw Orochimaru standing at the hole in the wall Sakura had made, the Sannin smirking a little as he looked at Sasuke.

"It would seem you needed my help, Sasuke," Orochimaru greeted before he quickly slithered over in a snake form. When he got to the group, he stood back up as a human and crossed his arms. "And it seems you met my little project. Strange, though. Until now, it had been in a sort of sleep-like state. Then you arrive and suddenly it's causing all kinds of problems." Sakura and Karin rushed to Sasuke's side, Sakura beginning to heal his chest and arm. Karin held out her arm, pulling her sleeve up.

"Sasuke, bite. You need to heal if we're going to send this thing away!" Karin ordered. The Uchiha stared weakly but finally bit the Uzumaki's arm. Like so many times in the past when they had been on a team, Karin's healing chakra began to work on healing the Uchiha right away. As Karin and Sakura worked on quickly healing Sasuke, Orochimaru kept the lava monster away from them, using his snakes to fight the beast. Finally, when Sasuke was healed enough to stand again, Orochimaru hopped back to the group.

"I'll...I'll send him away now. I'll need a minute though, so keep him busy until I get the portal open," Sasuke ordered weakly, his Rinnesharingan glowing dark as he put his hands together. When the portal finally opened, Sakura, Karin and Orochimaru hopped back behind Sasuke. The portal opened up next to the lava monster. Shaking his head, Sasuke took a deep breath before he rushed one last time at the monster. He dodged several quick attacks, having to jump high to avoid the lava attacks. Finally, Sasuke flickered and appeared behind the monster. Summoning one last Susanoo shield, Sasuke rushed at the beast, slamming right into it. Susanoo arms formed and slowly Sasuke began to push the beast until finally Sasuke managed to grab the beast tightly. "Be gone!" he yelled, throwing the lava monster into the portal. Before it could rush back out, Sasuke closed the portal before falling to his knees, coughing up a large amount of blood. When he looked up at the others, his Rinnesharingan eye was bleeding badly. "It's...over..." he promised. Sasuke then fell forward, passing out, the Uchiha seemingly not breathing.

When he opened his eyes, Sasuke was surrounded by darkness. In front of him, a man as tall as himself stood. He had long, wild hair, a dark red-brown color, the Sharingan in his eyes. Sasuke knew right away who the man was, thanks to his time with the Sage of Six Paths during the war. The man appeared to be around 30 years old and wore a white robe with the markings of the sage around the collar area. His eyes were almost cold, a very serious look to them. Even with how strong Sasuke currently was, the feeling of this man's chakra made him feel like a low ranking Genin. Yes, Sasuke knew this man very well.

Indra Otsutsuki.

"What...?" Sasuke began.

"Hm. It seems that mindless beast is still around...And you had to fight it," Indra replied, the older man crossing his arms as he studied Sasuke.

"How are...? You are...?"

"Indra Otsutsuki. Father of the Uchiha, creator of Ninjutsu," the Otsutsuki replied in a serious tone, almost glaring at Sasuke. "Your original. But you already knew that, hm?"

"My...Original?" Sasuke asked slowly, seeming confused.

"Don't waste my time, boy. We both know you know about being my reincarnation. My latest, and my last reincarnation."

"I know who you are. You're the Sage's son. He did tell me I was your reincarnation...So why am I suddenly seeing you?"

Indra was quiet for several seconds, the man staring at Sasuke with an almost amused smirk.

"Simple. The seal is breaking, of course," Indra finally replied, his deep voice sounding amused.

"Seal? What are you talking about? I don't have any seals on me," Sasuke shot back, glaring at the Otsutsuki, an annoyed tone to his voice.

"Watch your tone, boy, and listen. Long ago, before I died, I used a reincarnation jutsu. But there was a catch. I would reincarnate over and over for 1,000 years." Indra lowered his arms, shaking his head. "And one of the things that...woke me up, I suppose you could say, was that monster you fought. I, too, fought it long ago." Sasuke listened silently, frowning a little before sighing, shaking his head.

"Why?" was all he could ask.

"Why what, boy?"

"You said you used a jutsu to reincarnate yourself. Why? Were you afraid to die?" Sasuke smirked, crossing his arms. Indra stared silently as his spiral Mangekyou formed in his eyes.

"Hm...not even close. I cursed myself to save the one I love."

Indra's response shocked Sasuke, the young Uchiha's smirk quickly going away. He watched the older man, unsure of how to respond, frowning as he thought it over.

"You saved the one you love...? What do you mean?" Sasuke finally asked in a small, quiet voice. Indra smirked, shaking his head.

"I suppose love is a new feeling to you, hm? Very well, I'll explain. If somebody hurt..." Indra paused as if trying to figure something out. "...Sakura. If they hurt her, and she was on death's door, would you simply let her die?" Indra questioned. Without hesitation, Sasuke shook his head.

"I wouldn't let Sakura just die, no. But what does that have to do with 'cursing' yourself, as you put it?"

"Hm...there was a battle. My wife was wounded badly while protecting me. She was dying, and there wasn't much I could do. I had been working on a jutsu that would...hm...allow one to live forever. But, it wasn't finished. And so, I used what I had. Before it was too late, I used a modified version of this jutsu, making it my love wouldn't fade...So I cursed us to be reborn countless times, never able to truly see each other again...or so I thought." Sasuke raised a brow, looking curious now.

"What changed?"

The Otsutsuki man smirked softly. "Two things changed. One, it would appear the jutsu has finally gotten too weak to work for another life. And two...you and Sakura are, for the first time, actually close. Your chakras...It would appear they have allowed me to finally wake up. Me...and my wife."

"Your wife...?"

Indra simply nodded.

"Hm...I was reincarnated in you, Uchiha Sasuke. Would it not make sense for my love to be reincarnated as someone close to you?" Indra crossed his arms once more, the Otsutsuki man smirking as Sasuke's eyes slowly widened.

"Wait...you mean...?" Sasuke trailed off, simply staring at Indra.

"Yes, Sasuke. If I was reborn as you, then my love...is within Sakura Haruno."

Sasuke wasn't sure what to say, feeling a little dizzy as he thought over everything he had learned. Looking up at Indra once more, Sasuke frowned, seeming unsure.

"You said the seals are weak now? What'll happen when they break finally?"

There was a long pause, the two men staring at each other, the Uchiha looking tired while the Otsutsuki looked serious once more.

"When the seals are finally broken, my wife and I will finally truly revive, as our own selves. Not into another person, but revived with our original bodies." Indra paused, shaking his head. "But I'm still not strong enough to come back just yet. There's still one more...task, that needs to be done before the seal breaks."

"And that task would be...?"

Indra only smirked, shaking his head.

"You will find out soon enough, Uchiha Sasuke. You'll know when the seal is broken." With that, Indra Otsutsuki began to fade, still too weak to show himself to Sasuke for long. "We'll meet again, Uchiha."

When Sasuke's eyes opened, he sat up in a bed, the room he was in dark with only a few torches for light. He gasped for breath, feeling dizzy. He looked around, noticing that his chest had bandages wrapped around it, though otherwise his wounds seemed to be mostly healed. His shirt was gone, though the rest of his clothes remained, the material of his clothes damaged from the battle with the lava monster. Looking around the room again, Sasuke slowly caught his breath, a frown coming to his face. As he looked around, Sasuke realized that the room he was currently in was his old room from when he was Orochimaru's student. Sasuke coughed harshly as he tried getting out of bed, though the Uchiha ended up falling, feeling too weak to stand yet. Where were the others? Sasuke wondered. As he sat up, leaning against his bed, Sasuke remembered meeting Indra. He frowned, holding his head in pain. "Indra...Shachi...Me and Sakura..." Sasuke sighed, lowering his hand, doing his best to ignore the ache in his head. He figured it was from meeting with Indra, and just hoped the headache would pass quickly.

Sasuke looked up as the door to his room slowly opened, tensing a little until he saw it was just Sakura. Sakura stared, as if surprised to see him up, but quickly went over, helping him off the floor and onto the bed.

"Sasuke! You're awake!" she cried out happily as she pulled him into a hug. When she felt Sasuke tense, she quickly let go, realizing she had hugged him too tight. "S-sorry. I-...We were so worried though!" Sasuke gave a tired smile.

"It's fine...But, how long was I asleep for?"

Sakura hesitated, looking away nervously.

"Well...this is day four, Sasuke. Your heart stopped a few times, but we managed to fix you up and now you should be fine. Sore, tired...but fine." Sasuke raised a brow, looking curious. His heart had stopped? Sasuke wondered if that was how he had met a long-dead man. Of course, from what he knew about the Otsutsuki, he didn't doubt it was, mostly, easy for Indra to show himself. After all, his father appeared to Sasuke during the war, and he had been dead longer than Indra. Hell, Indra's father was still around as a ghost, at least during the war.

"Uh...Sasuke? You okay...? You got a weird look on your face..." Sasuke mumbled. Sasuke blinked, shaking the thoughts away before looking at Sakura with a frown. Should he tell her about what happened? Or would that simply worry her? Sasuke thought it over for several seconds before he gave the pink haired woman a gentle smile.

"I...I'm fine, Sakura. It's just...Something weird happened while I was out." At Sakura's curious look, Sasuke began to explain everything he had learned, explaining everything he knew about Indra, telling Sakura everything even about them being reincarnations. When Sasuke finished, he looked at Sakura, rubbing his sore chest as he studied her, his Sharingan spinning slowly. "And then he just faded, saying we would meet again. So...I guess...Indra Otsutsuki is...sort of alive again?" Sakura was frowning by the time Sasuke finished telling her what he saw, feeling a little weirded out and also a little confused. She knew Sasuke was the reincarnation of Indra, but...she was a reincarnation as well? The Haruno woman shook her head and placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, looking into his Sharingan eye.

"So...I guess that explains the weird things that have happened since you came home, huh? It's...I guess them trying to wake up?" Sakura ran a hand through her hair, letting out a long groan. "This is..." Sakura trailed off, not sure how to describe how she felt. Sasuke simply gave a nod.

"Weird...confusing...annoying..." Sasuke listed before shrugging. "He said one more thing was needed before he woke up, but he didn't explain how she would wake...I guess we'll figure it out soon, like it or not." Sasuke quickly changed the subject, asking, "Where is Orochimaru? I wanted to ask him about that Mar guy." There was a knock at the door before Karin entered, pausing as she looked at the two. Sasuke looked over, staring with a blank look before he offered a tiny smile. "Karin. Maybe you can help. Where is he? Where is Orochimaru? He's got some things to explain to me." Karin hesitated, smiling nervously at the Uchiha.

"He uh...he left, Sasuke. While you were asleep, he decided to leave to go to one of the other bases. He wanted to check up on the experiments there, and...well...I did hear him mention he'd be bringing that Mar guy, though. So...I guess if you track him down, you might be able to get answers."

Sasuke glanced at Sakura before he stood slowly, ignoring the pain that shot through his aching body. "I've got other things I have to deal with...I suppose hunting Orochimaru down will have to wait for now." Sasuke looked at Sakura, the woman gently holding onto his arm in case he needed help standing. Sasuke stared into her eyes, Sakura staring back, the Uchiha looking curious. "Besides...We did originally come here for a reason, right?" With that, Sasuke turned to Karin. "Karin, do you forgive me?"

Karin stared blankly at the Uchiha before she began to laugh, shaking her head. Sasuke frowned at her reaction, thinking she was refusing, but Karin smiled and shook her head more as she laughed.

"Sasuke, when we were fighting that monster, you didn't hesitate to save my life. The Sasuke I knew from before the war would have let me get killed, but you...you didn't even hesitate. Hell...you got burned by lava protecting the two of us! The old Sasuke wouldn't have jumped in the way like that." Karin gave him a warm smile, giving a small nod. "So...Yeah, I forgive you, Sasuke. Thank you...It does mean a lot that you felt the need to say sorry." Sasuke visibly relaxed at the Uzumaki woman's words, letting out a relieved sigh before he smiled softly, sitting back on his bed.

"Thank you, Karin...When I get better, we'll be heading out. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to send for me. I...well, I owe you more than I can ever repay. You've saved me life before, after all." Karin gave another nod and chuckled as she opened the bedroom door, stepping into the hall before turning her head to look back at the two.

"Alright, Sasuke. Anyways, while you guys are here, feel free to explore the compound," Karin replied before she walked away, heading down the dark hallway.

It was only a full 24 hours later that Sasuke was feeling better, the Uchiha ready to continue their journey. As he and Sakura walked away from the base, waving goodbye to Karin, Sakura asked Sasuke, "Hey...how is it you're already feeling better? I mean, your heart stopped a few times, you were that messed up from the fight." The Uchiha hummed in thought before raising his zetsu arm in response.

"Well, Senju DNA is known to make people stronger and heal faster right? I mean, Obito during the war survived having the 10 Tails ripped out of him and was still able to help with Kaguya, even if only a little. But...Also, I think it might be because of my new connection to Indra. I don't know...It's hard to explain, but I honestly just feel...better. My pain is gone, and the wounds healed up as well, leaving just a few scars. Of course, part of that was because you and Karin were healing me as well, but still." As the two walked, Sasuke looked at his fake arm and shrugged. "Ah...anyways, our trip continues, right? Unless you want to back out. It's still not too late, you know. Being nearly killed so early on in a trip seems like a good reason to quit."

Sakura gave him a playful glare, shaking her head.

"No way, Uchiha. I told you, I'm not going to just leave you alone. Besides, what if you get hurt again? I'm not going to let you go alone and get yourself killed."

Sasuke was actually very happy at her response, having secretly hoped she wouldn't want to leave him. Smiling, Sasuke lowered his zetsu arm and looked ahead.

"Very well, Sakura. Since you're sure about coming with me, then let's continue our trip. Our next stop...hm..." Sasuke stopped walking, glancing at Sakura with a small smile. "My katana broke during that fight. I need to get a new one at some point, so why don't we head to Sand next? Besides, I heard they were having trouble lately. Might be a good chance to improve people's opinion of me if I go to help out." Sasuke paused before adding, "Plus, I think I pissed off the Sand Village the least out of everyone." Sakura giggled softly and gave a nod of agreement.

With Sasuke healed and feeling much better, the two made it halfway to the Sand village by nightfall. The two decided to stop and set up camp, Sasuke using a small fire jutsu to get their fire started. The two sat quietly by the fire, their focus drawn to the crackling flames.

"You've gotten quicker since the war ended," Sasuke finally said to break the silence, the Uchiha glancing over at the pink haired woman. Sakura looked back and offered a smile, nodding a little.

"With you gone, Naruto had nobody to spar with. So, I've been sparring with Naruto lately. Don't want to get rusty, after all, or fall behind again." Sasuke hummed softly and gave a nod. He hesitated before standing up, holding his hand out with a smile. Sakura took his hand and stood as well, looking curious. "What is it, Sasuke?" she asked softly.

"Do you want to train with me? It's not too late, and after being in bed the last few days I feel a little restless," Sasuke explained, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Sakura thought it over, humming softly. She wasn't tired either, and so Sakura gave a nod.

"Sure, Sasuke, that sounds good. What kind of training are we going to do?" Sakura looked at the Uchiha as he pulled out a scroll, the Uchiha chuckling softly as he handed it over. Sakura instantly recognized the scroll as the one the Uchiha had given her. "...You want me to practice your clan's signature jutsu right now?" Sakura finally asked, Sasuke giving an amused smile as Sakura took the scroll. "Hey, why did you even have this? You gave it to me." Sasuke shrugged, looking amused.

"You had it, relax. I just took it right now," the Uchiha promised. Sakura looked at the scroll and slowly opened it, taking a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll start practicing this jutsu tonight. What will you be doing?" Sakura questioned, sitting down with the scroll unrolled so she could began studying it. Sasuke watched Sakura quietly, the woman's focus on the scroll. He couldn't help but smile again. "Sasuke?" Sakura asked, looking up to see him smiling. "What?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I just really am happy you're here with me, Sakura. That's all," the Uchiha replied softly, reaching down to tap her forehead with a warm smile. Sakura blushed and quickly looked back down at the scroll, mumbling under her breath. Sasuke chuckled and sat down next to her, tapping under his Rinnesharingan.

"To answer your question, though, I'm going to try getting better with this eye. I'm already skilled with it, but it never hurts to keep getting better." Sakura gave a nod and returned her focus on her scroll, reading in silence. As Sasuke got up to begin his training, Sakura gently tapped his hand. Sasuke looked down to see Sakura looking up at him with a smile.

"If you need healing or anything, just let me know, Sasuke," the medic told him. Sasuke gave a nod and walked off, not going too far away from their camp site. Closing his right eye, Sasuke looked around with his Rinnesharingan. Sasuke put his hands together and focused for several seconds. "Limbo: Border Jail," Sasuke murmured softly. Slowly, one by one, clones of Sasuke appeared. Unlike Madara's four clones, Sasuke was able to summon six. Sasuke closed his Rinnesharingan eye and opened his Sharingan eye, smirking a little when he was no longer able to see the clones. "Okay, so that works. Good." Sasuke shut his eye once more and opened his Rinnesharingan again to continue his training, the clones becoming visible once more with the help of his Rinnesharingan. Sasuke had the clones simply walk around, Sasuke watching in silence as he lowered his hands. Sasuke was able to hold the jutsu for five minutes before the clones returned to Sasuke, the Uchiha panting softly from the effort of making the jutsu last so long. He waited, and smiled a bit to himself when only 45 seconds after returning the clones he was able to summon them again. "Okay, good. I'm getting better at this." Sasuke made the clones go away for good, wanting to move on with his training.

Sasuke made a normal clone and had it walk ahead of him, the clone soon turning to face him. "Alright, now I'll practice absorbing chakra and attacks," Sasuke said to himself. With a nod to the clone, the clone quickly did handsigns before launching a massive fireball at the real Sasuke. Sasuke held his hand out, his Rinnesharingan glowing. As the fireball got close enough, it slowed as Sasuke drained it. Once the attack was drained, Sasuke let out a soft grunt and held his eye in pain. He quickly shook the pain off however and made the clone pop. Sasuke did his own handsigns but suddenly froze when he heard a voice.

"Hm, and what exactly are you doing?" the voice asked. Sasuke clenched his teeth.

It was Indra once more, speaking in his mind.

"Shut up, damn it. I'm not going to look like a crazy person by talking to myself," Sasuke snapped back. The Uchiha heard a chuckle in response.

"You aren't talking to yourself. Not technically."

"Shut...up. I need to get back to training."

"Hm. You want to get strong enough to always protect Sakura Haruno, don't you?" Indra questioned after a long pause, his tone making him sound almost proud of the last Uchiha. Sasuke refused to answer at first, but finally sighed, seeing no point in trying to ignore the Otsutsuki.

"I've become rusty. Ever since the war, I haven't exactly been in too many tough fights that require my Rinnesharingan. So, yes. I want to get better with it. After that monster attacked us...Well, I never want to risk Sakura getting killed. So I have to master this eye." Indra listened in silence, and didn't respond for so long that Sasuke thought the man had decided to leave him alone. Sasuke let out a soft sigh, putting his hands together once again to return to his training when Indra finally spoke once more.

"I see. Very well, Uchiha Sasuke. I'm still too weak to truly help you, but there is one thing I can gift you if you wish to grow stronger. I can give you the power, but you'd have to train it until you're stronger with it," Indra finally said. Sasuke became curious at his words, though was also a little unsure.

"And why would you bother helping me...?" Sasuke asked, whispering now so Sakura wouldn't hear him talking. He could hear the Otsutsuki man sigh softly.

"You are my heir, Uchiha Sasuke. You are the last Uchiha, a clan I helped start. You are my heir, so of course I care, little Uchiha." There was a small pause before Indra added, "So do you want what little help I can currently offer?"

Sasuke thought over Indra's offer, though still felt a little unsure. After spending most of his life trying to do things without help, Sasuke felt odd at the thought of taking help finally. Of course, it wasn't too odd for him. He had had help over the years, of course, despite his stubborn nature. Sakura protecting him in the Forest of Death when he was knocked out after getting the Curse Seal. Karin healing him multiple times during his time as leader of Taka. Even now, Sakura was with him on his trip. Letting out a soft sigh, Sasuke finally gave a nod.

"Fine, I'll take your help," Sasuke finally replied. He instantly regretted his choice. He felt a growing pain in his Zetsu arm, the Uchiha clenching his teeth as he clutched at the bandaged arm. As the feeling grew, Sasuke let out a pained gasp, gripping tightly. "What...What the hell's happening?" Sasuke asked Indra.

"I won't let an heir of mine rely on cheap methods of gaining power. You've done it all your life, haven't you? The Curse Seal. Taking your brother's eyes. My father giving you that Rinnesharingan. So here's the deal: I will give you a gift, but you will no longer rely on that fake arm of yours." After Indra replied, Sasuke let out a scream of pain as spikes of wood burst from his Zetsu arm, the wood slowly moving up the limb, wrapping tightly around it. "Hurry, little Uchiha, or the arm will destroy you." Before the vines could get to Sasuke's actually flesh, the Uchiha did the only thing he could. Using a Susanoo arm, Sasuke ripped the Zetsu arm off and threw it to the side. As the arm hit the ground, a small patch of flowers grew from the wood spikes sticking out of the too-pale flesh. Sakura had heard the screams of pain and came running. When she arrived, she saw Sasuke falling back, his arm bleeding badly after the Uchiha was forced to rip it off. As he fell, however, Sakura gasped in shock as small vines came from the ground to gently catch the Uchiha, the vines lowering softly to the ground.

The last thing Sasuke heard as he passed out was the fading voice of Indra Otsutsuki.

"Enjoy the only gift I can give you, little Uchiha. Enjoy the gift of...Wood Style."


	5. Indra Otsutsuki

When Sasuke's eyes opened, he found himself staring at a white wall and felt a dull pain in his left arm as well as a lightheaded buzz. The Uchiha looked around his room slowly, his white bed being the only in the room. As his focus returned through the fog in his mind, Sasuke could hear a soft beeping. Turning his head to investigate, the Uchiha found a heart monitor as well as an IV hooked up to him. Why was Sasuke in a hospital? He found it difficult to focus thanks to the drugs they gave him, his foggy mind wondering what had happened. Sitting up, Sasuke looked down at his body to check for wounds. His eyes landed on the wrapped stump of his left arm and confusion flashed through his mind. Where was his arm? The Uchiha struggled to recall what had happened, a scowl coming to his face.

Then it hit him.

Indra Otsutsuki had taken his arm.

But the Uchiha couldn't recall why at the moment and slowly drifted back to sleep.

When his eyes opened once more, Sasuke noticed he was still in the hospital bed, though was happy to find his mind less foggy. When his vision cleared and sleep left his mind, Sasuke found Sakura sitting on the edge of his bed, the pink haired woman looking tired and stressed. When she saw Sasuke was awake, she gave a soft smile.

"You're finally awake," she murmured softly before she let out a relieved sigh. She checked his bandaged arm and frowned before she looked Sasuke in the eye. "What happened, Sasuke? I heard you scream and when I got to you, vines were lowering you, your arm was ripped off and you were bleeding pretty bad." Sasuke turned his head, staring at the wall as he tried to remember why Indra had taken his arm. Vines...Sakura had mentioned she found vines lowering him. Narrowing his eyes Sasuke glared at the wall. Turning his head back to Sakura, Sasuke shrugged once.

"It's hard to focus with whatever they gave me, but...I remember him saying he would give me a gift. The arm was the price of the gift, I think." Sighing, Sasuke looked down at his right arm, studying the IV with a curious look. He sat up and motioned to his remaining arm, a serious look on his face. "Sakura, I need you to get them to stop giving me medicine for the pain. It's hard to focus, and we both know using chakra is nearly impossible to do when drugged." Sakura seemed to hesitate a moment but soon gave a reluctant nod and rose to her feet, walking to the door. She stopped at the door, turning her head to glance back at Sasuke.

"I'll see you when you wake up again, Sasuke." The Uchiha nodded before he relaxed his head back on his pillow, drifting off to sleep quickly.

When he finally woke up for good, Sasuke's mind was clear and his arm throbbed with pain. He was used to pain, having spent a good portion of his life fighting in one way or another. During his time with Orochimaru he learned to ignore pain, to not let it distract him, so he wasn't too worried. What did worry the Uchiha, however, was having only one arm. He would have to learn to do jutsus with one hand. Sure, it wouldn't be too difficult, but he knew it would take a little time to get the hang of it. In the meanwhile, Sasuke wondered if he could use Susanoo as a sort of replacement until he learned to use just his one arm. His thoughts were interrupted when the door to his hospital room opened, Sakura stepping inside with a wave.

"Hey, Sasuke. Feeling better?" she questioned, moving to stand by the bed. The Uchiha gave a single nod, running his hand over the bandages.

"Yeah, I'll get there," Sasuke said with a shrug. He watched Sakura, his Sharingan spinning lazily as he studied her features. He could tell she was worried about him so the Uchiha offered a small smile as he sat up. "So, when can I leave?" he questioned, swinging his legs over the side of the bed before standing. He wobbled a bit, having to place his hand on the wall to balance himself, legs feeling weak from being in bed for so long. When he managed to steady himself, he stretched, cracking his back before walking over to Sakura.

Sakura watched the man with an amused smile, shaking her head with a soft laugh. It seemed even losing an arm wouldn't be able to slow down the Uchiha. Or, losing an arm again, Sakura thought. She wasn't so surprised. After all, Sasuke and Naruto had fought to the brink of death, both losing an arm and nearly bleeding out. And yet the two were better in no time. Returning her focus to Sasuke, Sakura gave a shrug.

"Well, technically you can leave any time you want. It's not like they could stop you. But, you should be fine to leave today whenever you want," Sakura explained.

"Where are we, exactly?"

"Sand village," Sakura replied. "We were already heading there, so I decided it was best to rush here so you could get to a hospital. I mean, normally I would just fix you up but after rough time we've had, I thought it'd be best to just let you rest up a bit." Sasuke hummed softly as he grabbed his bag from the bedside table, reaching in to pull out a storage scroll.

"Could you give me a minute? I need to change into new clothes."

Sakura simply nodded and stepped out of the room.

When Sasuke exited the room as well, he had on fresh clothes. A black short sleeved shirt with the Uchiha crest on the back as well as long black pants, the same style of pants a Jonin would wear. In his arms were his old clothes as well as his thick cloak. The Uchiha quickly found a garbage can and threw the old clothes away, seeing no point in keeping them with how torn and bloody they were. He quickly returned to Sakura's side, his bag over his shoulder.

"Want to go get breakfast?" he offered. "We can get something to eat as we figure out our next stop," he explained.

"It'd be lunch by now, but that sounds great," Sakura agreed, the two heading out of the hospital together. When they got outside, the Uchiha had to shield his eyes, the blinding sun irritating his eyes. It took his eyes several seconds to adjust, but when they did Sasuke lowered his hand and began to walk. He had been in Sand once before, so he knew the basic layout.

"There should be a place nearby," Sasuke commented before simply becoming silent, letting his thoughts wander as they walked through the village. Some people were staring, either at Sasuke's wrapped stump or at the couple themselves. Sasuke paid them no attention, and soon they arrived at a diner. Sasuke held the door open for Sakura, following in behind her before the two took a seat by a window. As they waited, Sasuke looked at Sakura, resting his arm on the table. "So, I think we should check the Bingo Books Kakashi gave us. See if Sand has any rogue problems," Sasuke started.

Being reminded of the things Kakashi gave them, Sakura slowly got a huge grin, pointing at Sasuke's forehead. The Uchiha stared, confusion washing over him. What was she doing? Sakura gestured at her Konoha headband before pointing once again to Sasuke's forehead.

"Remember, Kakashi-sensei said you have to wear your Konoha headband while in a ninja village," Sakura pointed out in an amused tone. "That was one of his conditions of letting me go with you, was it not?" she teased. Sasuke stared at his girlfriend as if she was on drugs.

"You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope, sorry Sasuke. You gotta wear the headband," Sakura repeated with a goofy grin. "So hurry up and put it on!"

Sasuke refused to do anything for several seconds, simply staring out the window as he tapped his fingers against the table. He soon decided that it wouldn't be that bad to wear the headband. After all, Sasuke did make a promise that he would protect Konoha so that his brother's death wouldn't be pointless. Taking the headband out of his bag, Sasuke focused and slowly a skeletal Susanoo arm grew from his stump. He raised the purple arm and studied it, chuckling softly. He wiggled the boney fingers, made a fist and did a few simple hand signs all just to test how well it could be used as an arm when needed. Susanoo was very useful. Quickly tying the headband in place, Sasuke shot Sakura a smile, the Susanoo arm fading when he no longer needed it.

"There. Konoha headband on. Now, about the Bingo Books..." Sasuke pulled his own Bingo Book out and flipped through the pages slowly, stopping on a page that looked promising. "Here's a possible target. Goes by 'Satoshi'." Sasuke set the book on the table, showing the info to Sakura. The picture in the bingo book showed a man with a red short mohawk. He had a scar over his right eye, the eye shut and on his chin he had an X shaped scar. "Says he left the village when he was 27 years old, five years ago." Sasuke looked down at the Bingo Book page, humming in thought as he studied Satoshi's photo. "According to this, Satoshi uses Earth, Water and Wind style jutsus."

Sasuke frowned, raising a brow as he looked from the book to Sakura and back down once more. "Weird. What do you think that means? 'Do not let Satoshi lay a hand on you or you will be trapped.'" Sakura took the book and read over the information, just as unsure of what it meant as Sasuke was.

"Maybe he has some sort of jutsu that requires touch," Sakura concluded with a shrug.

"Yeah, maybe. Anyways, I think we should take care of this guy for Sand," Sasuke decided, looking up at Sakura see what she wanted to do. "What do you think?"

"Sounds good to me. We should let Sand know we'll be hunting Satoshi, though, so they don't send someone who will get in our way."

20 minutes later, when the two had finished eating, they found themselves in the Kazekage mansion, standing face to face with a masked ANBU woman. Sasuke pulled out the Bingo Book and opened it to the page about Satoshi before handing the book over, the woman taking it silently.

"Oh, you two wish to hunt down Satoshi? Very well, we'd appreciate the help. If you can, bring him back alive. We'd like to question him. If you have to, though, kill him. No point risking your life, after all. I can give you a map to help get you started, but we believe we know where he is. There's been sightings a few miles from here in an oasis. I'd start there, see if you can find anything." The woman left the room and when she came back she handed Sasuke a map, the Uchiha tucking it away in his bag for later use.

"Thanks," was all Sasuke said before simply turning and walking away, Sakura quickly following behind him. When the two made it outside, Sakura pulled the map out and unfolded it, studying it with his Sharingan. Thanks to the power of the Sharingan, as Sasuke scanned the map it was burned into his memory. He gave it a single lookover before he folded it back up and simply burned it with Amaterasu, leaving nothing but ash that was carried away by the wind. "We won't need the map," he promised Sakura before she could ask about his actions. She gave a soft chuckle, shaking her head.

"Got it all up here?" she asked, tapping her temple. Sasuke nodded and chuckled as well before he began to walk, the breeze a nice feeling compared to the intense heat of the Sand village.

When the two got outside of the village gates, Sasuke turned to Sakura and said, "Let's see about taking him alive. But if you need to, feel free to punch his jaw off." Sakura frowned, quickly shaking her head as she raised her hands.

"Hey, I don't do that! Sure, I have a temper at times, but I wouldn't just punch someone's jaw off!" Sakura shouted in defense, shaking a fist at Sasuke. The Uchiha smirked a little and shrugged, jokingly rolling his eyes.

"Sure thing, Sakura," Sasuke replied, quickly ducking to avoid the hit Sakura aimed at his head. He chuckled and stood, catching her second attack with ease. "I was joking, Sakura. I know you have a softer heart than me," he murmured, gripping her fist tightly to hold it in place. He had to even use his Rinnesharingan to drain a lot of the chakra to avoid messing up his hand. Even so, the impact caused his hand to sting. It seemed Sakura really wasn't afraid to show how she felt, unlike when they were younger. It honestly made Sasuke happy. After all, Sakura'd be able to call him out on any bullshit he tried to pull. "I'm going to let go now. Don't punch me," Sasuke told her, holding for another moment before he slowly let go, lowering his hand back to his side. Sakura grumbled a little but then smiled and began to walk.

It took them almost no time at all, thanks to their speed, to find the oasis that they had been told to begin their search at. The place was shaded by several large trees and had a large pool of water in the middle of the area. When they arrived, Sakura pulled out a kunai, instantly on guard and ready for whatever might happen. Sasuke hummed as he looked at the scene in front of them, his Sharingan darting around to search for anything useful. A dead man lay half in the water, looking as if he had been trying to crawl out when he had been killed. The sand around them was stained red from blood, far more than the single body could possibly produce. Sasuke saw a bloody kunai sticking out of one of the trees shading the area, and at the base of the tree was what appeared to be a phone. Stepping over, Sasuke kneeled to check to phone, finding the screen cracked and the keys bloody. He sighed and turned to Sakura as he stood, shaking his head.

"Multiple people died here. At least five, judging from how much blood there is," Sakura commented, doing her own search of the area. She stopped by the remaining body, crouching to check for a cause of death. She found multiple cuts to his wrists as well as a large cut across his back. Though the wounds would cause the victim to bleed, Sakura noted they didn't seem deep enough for the victim to die from blood loss. She turned him over and studied his face. He looked pale, the area around his lips and eyes a shade of blue.

He had been poisoned, Sakura decided as she stood. She turned to tell Sasuke of her findings when she spotted their target diving from his hiding spot in one of the trees, the man diving towards Sasuke with a kunai in his hand. Sasuke's back was to Satoshi, and the Uchiha seemingly didn't notice the man. Sakura opened her mouth to warn him, but right before Satoshi was able to hit Sasuke he spun, catching his wrist with a Susanoo skeletal hand, clutching him roughly. Satoshi gave a grunt before he quickly placed his feet on Sasuke's chest and kicked off, pulling free and landing again a tree. Sasuke stumbled back but quickly caught himself as Sakura rushed to his side.

"He's using poison," Sakura explained quickly, putting her kunai away. "Or, the dead guy over there was poisoned at least." Sasuke made a mental note to not let himself get cut by any weapon Satoshi might use against them.

"Thanks, Sakura." Sasuke turned his attention to Satoshi, narrowing his eyes as he crossed his arms. "You must be Satoshi then. You match the Bingo Book picture, at least. We're here to either bring you back to Sand or kill you if needed."

Satoshi slowly began to grin, soon letting out crazy laughs at Sasuke's words. They came to end his fun? Well, that just wouldn't do. He was having way too much fun to let things end! When he finally stopped laughing, he looked over towards the two and gave them a grin, a crazy look in his eyes. "You want to stop my fun? Sorry, but I'm not going to let you do that."

"I wasn't asking," Sasuke simply said before looking at Sakura. "Let's do this, Sakura."

"My pleasure," Sakura replied, cracking her knuckles. The couple rushed the rogue ninja, Satoshi running towards them as well. He swung his kunai at Sakura, aiming to cut her throat. Before the metal could touch her skin, however, he was suddenly thrown back, slamming into a tree.

"Almighty Push!"

Satoshi quickly got up, cracking his neck with an annoyed scowl. "God damn eye tricks," he muttered. He didn't have any more time to complain though as Sakura was in front of him. She grabbed him by the collar and spun, throwing him towards Sasuke. Sasuke ducked low and kicked Satoshi high in the air, Sakura launching herself off the tree to get above Satoshi. She slammed her fist down onto his chest, sending him flying down. With a large splash, Satoshi landing in the water and began to sink. Sakura landed by Sasuke, the two moving together towards the water. When they neared it, water dragon after water dragon shot out, soaring towards the couple. Sasuke quickly surrounded Sakura in the Susanoo ribcage, blocking her as he held out his hand and focused his Rinnesharingan. As the dragons hit Sasuke they were quickly sucked up, being drained before they could do any damage to the man. Satoshi hopped out of the water as his dragons distracted Sasuke and Sakura. In the air, he quickly did handsigns and inhaled deeply. "Wind Style: Wind Cannon Jutsu!" he shouted before shooting a massive wall of air at Sasuke. Sasuke saw the wall rushing at him, still draining the last few water dragons away. Before it could hit Sasuke, Sakura threw a kunai up towards Satoshi.

"Thanks, Sakura," Sasuke called out before he suddenly flickered and vanished. Where he had been standing, the kunai now was stuck into the sand, Sasuke up in the air near Satoshi. He thrust a Chidori covered hand at Satoshi's shoulder, planning on just making it so the man wouldn't be able to fight any longer. Before he could hit, Satoshi moved quickly and caught Sasuke by the wrist, a crazy grin on his face.

"Allow me to show you why you should never let me touch you," Satoshi said with a smirk.

Sasuke stared, confused, before Satoshi activated his jutsu.

Sasuke ran through the Uchiha Compound, fear running through the little Uchiha. He had just arrived home from delivering a letter for his mother, and as soon as he entered their clan's home he could tell something was very wrong. He heard screams of pain, saw bodies across the streets as well as houses burning. Though he was terrified, Sasuke forced himself to continue going further into the compound, making his way home. He had to make sure his family was safe! When he finally made it home he hesitated, placing his hand on the door. Why did he feel like something very bad was about to happen? When Sasuke entered, he found his father and mother kneeling on their knees, staring at the ground. Itachi stood silently behind them with a blank expression, his crimson eyes glowing in the darkness.

"M...Mother...? Father...?" Sasuke whispered, the child's voice shaking with fear. "Big brother? What's happening? We have...We have to get out of here!" When his family didn't move Sasuke frowned. "Did you hear me?! We gotta-"

Without hesitation, Itachi swung his sword, cutting their parents down with one motion. They fell forward, dead before they hit the ground, and Itachi looked up, his Sharingan slowly changing to the Mangekyou Sharingan.

"Foolish little brother..."

The vision changed.

They had fought for hours, both at the end of their chakra, both exhausted. Sasuke was backed up against a wall that held the Uchiha crest, panting hard as he watched Itachi slowly stumble over. Itachi paused, harshly coughing into his hands. When he pulled them away from his face, they were soaked in blood. Itachi panted as he slowly stumbled on, soon coming up to Sasuke. Sasuke watched, pressing himself against the wall as Itachi slowly reached up. It seemed Itachi would take Sasuke's eye finally. But at the last second, he poked the younger Uchiha on the forehead, his eyes shut as he smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke...There won't be a next time..." Itachi whispered softly. His fingers trailed down Sasuke's face, leaving a line of blood before he fell forward, hitting the wall before falling back, dead before he hit the ground.

Sasuke stood in a stunned silence, his eyes wide. But he soon passed out as well.

Yet again, the memory changed. Itachi's true final words to his baby brother. Words that Sasuke would never forget.

"I always lied to you, telling you to forgive me. I always kept you far away, with my own hands...I didn't want...to involve you...But now I think...That maybe YOU would have been able to change our father, mother...The Uchiha...If I had faced you from the start...Tried to see things from your point of view and talked with you about the truth...But I failed, and no matter what I say now, it still won't reach you. That's why I'm finally going to say what I really think. You don't have to forgive me...No matter what you decide to do from now on...I will love you forever."

When Sasuke opened his eyes, he found himself laying in the sand. As his vision cleared, he could see Sakura fighting Satoshi, the pink haired woman quickly dodging his attacks. She seemed furious. Satoshi jumped far back from Sakura to avoid one of her body-shattering punches and when he landed he put his hands together, ready to do handsigns. Sasuke weakly forced himself to sit up, feeling oddly exhausted after the memories Satoshi forced him to relive.

"I'm going to kill you with this jutsu, then I'm going to kill your precious boyfriend!" Satoshi warned Sakura. At his words, Sasuke felt an anger wash over him. He held his hand out, growling softly in anger as he focused. Work...Work...Work!

When it was almost too late, a single wood spike launched from Sasuke's palm, soaring at Satoshi. It hit his hands, forcing them together as it broke through both. Satoshi let out a scream of anger and pain as Sasuke got back on his feet. The Uchiha rushed the man and tackled him roughly, punching him in the face as hard as he could, a look of murderous rage in his eyes.

"Don't you fucking touch her," Sasuke warned in a cold voice. He punched Satoshi, refusing to give the man the chance to escape. By the time Sakura pulled him off of the man, blood dripped from his fist and Satoshi was knocked out. The two were quiet for several seconds, Sakura pulling the wood spike out of Satoshi's hand before lifting him up over her shoulder.

"Well...we got him alive," Sakura said slowly. She paused, glancing down at the shaken Uchiha. Just what had happened when Satoshi touched him? It must have been pretty serious to bother Sasuke so much. "Sasuke, are you okay?" Sakura finally asked. Sasuke stood up and began to walk next to Sakura.

"Look...We can talk about it later, okay? Let's get Satoshi back to Sand, get our reward and then we can talk about it somewhere private. In fact...there's a place I've been using as a sort of home-away-from-home. I found it while traveling around with my Rinnesharingan. We can go there." Sakura looked over, raising a brow. If he had found it while jumping around with his Rinnesharingan, it must have been a pretty interesting place.

"Okay, Sasuke. Let's drop this guy off then we can go to...where ever it is your place is located." Sasuke gave a single nod.

When the two arrived back at the Kazekage's mansion they were greeted by the same masked woman. Sakura dropped Satoshi at her feet and placed a hand on her hip.

"We brought him back alive."

The ANBU woman looked down at the knocked out Satoshi and whistled, calling for her ANBU squad to enter. Two men entered the room, both wearing masks, and simply carried Satoshi out of the room. When Satoshi was gone, the woman pulled out a scroll and handed it to Sasuke.

"There's 1,000,000 ryo sealed in the scroll. It was considered an S-Rank mission after all," the masked woman explained. "Thank you for the help. Though, I doubt it was too much of a problem for the two of you. Being heroes of the war and all." The two simply shrugged, neither wanting to think about the war. Sasuke had been stabbed through the heart by his own ancestor, and had been at death's door. Many people died during the war, and Sasuke didn't like to be reminded about it. It was his fault, after all.

"No problem. Anyways, we have to go," Sasuke murmured.

When the two were outside, Sasuke looked to Sakura and said, "Let's pick up some food and a few drinks. Where we're going, I haven't been to lately so it's out of those." Sakura was becoming very curious about the Uchiha's 'second home'. What was it like, she wondered. She was happy to know she'd be finding out soon. "We'll stock up, actually. I think we deserve a bit of a break, don't you?"

"Well...Already, you've gotten Karin to forgive you. We fought a lava monster. You had an arm ripped off. We took down a rogue ninja for Sand. I think after so much craziness, yeah, a rest would be great."

The two soon found themselves at the store. They walked slowly through the aisles, just seeing what they might want. By the time they left they had plenty of food, drinks (normal and things such as wine). Sasuke had bought some anmitsu for Sakura, knowing it was her favorite. As they stood outside the store holding the bags of supplies, Sasuke slowly opened a purple-black portal. It was a little difficult, the Uchiha feeling tired still from Satoshi's jutsu. But he managed to hold it open and together the two walked through to Sasuke's own little world.

When the portal closed behind them, Sakura looked amazed as she looked around her. The sky was a dark purple color with two crimson moons hanging in the sky. It was night time as they arrived at the clearing, trees bordering the edge of the property. There was a house, an Uchiha symbol on the door. The design of the house itself seemed to be very traditional. Out front were hotsprings and a small training area. Though it was night time, it didn't feel cold, the world seeming to be the perfect temperature. Ravens sat in the trees, the birds watching them quietly. There were no other animals around, it seemed.

When Sakura was able to talk she looked to Sasuke, an amazed look in her eyes.

"You...found THIS?" she asked, nodding towards the hotsprings and house. "This place is amazing!" The Uchiha motioned for her to follow him, taking her to the house. He slid the door open and let himself in, giving a nod at her question as he moved towards the kitchen to put their supplies away.

"Yeah, I found this place maybe a year ago. A bit after my birthday, in fact. At first I wasn't sure about staying here, but I didn't find anyone here. Plus...I don't know, it just felt as if I belonged here." Sasuke opened the fridge and began putting their food away as Sakura put things away in drawers. "It was a little run down, though. Easily spent 75,000 ryo fixing it up. But it was worth it." When the two got everything put away they sat at the table, Sasuke on one side with Sakura sitting across from him. "You want to relax in the hotsprings?" Sasuke offered. "It's very soothing." Sakura considered his offer, running a hand through her hair as she hummed. It would be nice to relax, she had to admit. Giving a nod, Sakura stood from the table and smiled.

"Yeah, sounds good. Maybe you could try some more wine while we chat."

Sasuke grabbed one of the bottles and followed Sakura outside to the hotsprings, steam rising from the warm water. The two glanced at each other before Sasuke set the wine bottle down. He paused, seemingly unsure, but then removed his shirt and his pants, leaving himself in just his boxers. He then slipped into the water, a sigh escaping his lips as he relaxed, leaning back with his eyes closed. Sakura paused like Sasuke had but soon she was stripped down to her bra and underwear, the woman slipping in next to Sasuke. She felt better almost instantly, the water soothing her sore body. Sakura reached over and grabbed the wine bottle, handing it to Sasuke with a grin.

"Here, try this. I think you'll like it, Sasuke. Anyays, about earlier..."

As the two drank, the chatted. Sasuke told her all about the memories Satoshi had forced him to relive. But after, their topics changed, the two talking about all kinds of things. Sasuke told her about the places he had been. Sakura told him about the clinic she started. By the time they had been talking for an hour, they had gone through three of the bottles of wine they bought. Their faces were flush from the heat as well as alcohol. Sakura was hugging his arm softly, a goofy grin on her face as they talked.

"Sasuuuuuke," Sakura suddenly said, causing the man to stop his talking. He looked down at her with his own grin, looking curious about what she had to say. "Sasuuuuke, you think I'm pretty right?" Sakura questioned as she looked up into her lover's eyes, a nervous smile on her face. Sasuke hummed as he studied the woman on his arm, his Sharingan spinning lazily, burning the sight of her into his mind. He would have to be a blind idiot to not see Sakura was beautiful, The Uchiha hummed again before he gave her a grin, nodding.

"Of course I do, Sakura," he promised finally, a relieved look coming to Sakura's face. Sakura moved even closer before she hesitated. She wasn't sure if it was from the alcohol or not, but Sakura found herself nervously rubbing at Sasuke's crotch, giving him a shy smile. Sasuke's eyes widened at her touch, the Uchiha letting out a surprised gasp. "Sakura, what...?" he began but shut up when she suddenly kissed his lips gently, wrapping her free arm around him as she continued to palm his growing bulge. It was a little hard to handle for Sasuke. Truth be told, with how consumed with revenge he had been while growing up, Sasuke never had any sort of sexual feelings. He saw no point, wanting to focus on his mission. But with Sakura's hand rubbing at him, the Uchiha couldn't deny he wanted her to keep going. "S...Sakura..." Sasuke murmured, staring at the woman as she pulled back from the kiss. Sakura stared back, her face red as she gently gripped his bulge.

"Y...yes, Sasuke-kun?" she asked softly. "Is...something wrong?" Sasuke shifted a little, seeming very embarrassed suddenly. He hesitated before leaning in to whisper in her ear.

"I uh...I've never..." he began. Clearing his throat, the Uchiha tried again. "I've never actually bothered doing sexual things before," he admitted before leaning back. Sakura paused her rubbing to stare at Sasuke, a surprised look on her face.

"Wait, you mean you've never-"

"Yep, masturbation would have been a waste of time to me back then," Sasuke admitted.

"Oh, well...do you want me to stop, or...?" Sakura trailed off.

"No!" Sasuke blurted out before looking away, chuckling nervously. Sakura found his reaction funny and couldn't help but giggle.

"Well, if you are fine with it, I have an idea!" Sasuke looked curious and gave a nod. "Alright, just sit on the edge for me." Sasuke did as she told, looking down at the woman. Sakura eyed his bulge quietly, taking a deep breath. Slowly, she gripped his boxers and pulled them down, freeing Sasuke's cock. When his boxers were off, the Haruno woman stared in silence for several seconds. Sasuke, now fully hard, was 9 or 10 inches, Sakura guessed. Looking up at Sasuke with a nervous grin, Sakura coughed a bit.

"Wow. You, uh...Uchihas are gifted in many ways it looks like," Sakura joked. Her gaze returned to Sasuke's shaft. "I, uh, am gonna try something now, Sasuke. Just let me know if you wanna stop." With that, Sakura took another deep breath before leaning forward, the woman clearly looking nervous. She gave the tip a slow lick before opening her mouth, slowly taking Sasuke's shaft in. Obviously, she couldn't just take every inch in one go. But Sakura took what she could, the first four inches, licking slowly as her lips moved up and down Sasuke's dick. The Uchiha gripped the edge of the hotsprings as a gasp of pleasure left his lips, the man squirming from pleasure as Sakura used her mouth to please him. Sasuke looked down and watched Sakura, his Sharingan burning the image to his mind, making it a memory he would never forget.

Sakura soon managed to take the first six inches, bobbing her head slowly, her wet hair sticking to her forehead. She looked up slowly as she sucked on him. Her face felt very warm and was red from embarrassment. Sasuke closed his eyes tightly and and let out a groan of pleasure as he gently ran a hand through Sakura's hair, his cock throbbing in the woman's mouth.

"Fuck, Sakura...you're amazing," he breathed, letting out a weak, shaky laugh. In response, Sakura slowly raised a hand to teasingly play with his balls. At her actions, Sasuke let out a long moan of pleasure as he began to cum. Sakura swallowed quickly around his throbbing shaft, swallowing his load with trouble. Sakura found she actually enjoyed the taste of his seed. Slowly pulling her mouth of his cock, Sakura wiped her lips and offered a shy smile.

"Wow, that was a lot," she commented, slowly moving to sit up by Sasuke, giving the man a kiss to the cheek. "Do you think...?" she began.

"Bedroom...?" Sasuke asked slowly. He was having too much fun to end things when they had just started. Sakura gave him a goofy grin and nodded, the two quickly rushing off to the house. When they made it to the bedroom, Sasuke's cock became painfully hard when he watched Sakura remove her wet bra and underwear, the woman now fully naked in front of him. Sasuke studied her, first staring at her tits with a goofy grin before he lowered his gaze. He stared quietly at her crotch, an amused smile coming to the Uchiha's face. So Sakura's hair WAS a natural pink! The two soon moved up to each other, Sakura wrapping her arms around his neck as they began to kiss, backing up towards the bed. Both began laughing as they tripped and landed on the bed, laying next to each other. Sasuke looked over and sat up, pulling Sakura into another soft kiss, wrapping his arm around her slowly.

"Sakura..." Sasuke suddenly seemed very serious. Sakura blinked, wondering why his mood suddenly changed. Did she do something wrong?

"Huh? Sasuke, what's wrong?" The Uchiha stared quietly for several seconds before he slowly began to smile, kissing the woman on her forehead.

"Well...I love you, Sakura," Sasuke finally admitted. Sakura pulled back to stare at the man, narrowing her eyes a little.

"If you're joking right now..." she began. But Sasuke just shook his head and pulled her into a kiss, letting out a grunt as Sakura moved them so she was straddling Sasuke. Sasuke looked up at her with a confused look but soon let out a hiss of pleasure as Sakura slowly lowered herself onto his hard cock. It took a few roll of her hips but Sakura finally had Sasuke balls deep in her pussy, the two letting out gasps of pleasure. Sakura felt very full, and Sasuke felt as if she had him in a death grip. It was great, the two decided.

Slowly, Sakura began to ride her boyfriend, placing her hands on his chest to keep herself balanced. Sasuke had his hand on her hip, helping the woman bounce as best as he could, gasps and groans coming from the both of them as she rode his cock.

Suddenly, Sakura began to ride him much harder, moving her hips quickly to take him balls deep every time she lowered herself. His cock throbbed deep inside Sakura, the Haruno woman suddenly screaming in pleasure, her eyes rolling up as her tongue hung out of her mouth. Sasuke watched her, confused about her sudden change in behavior. But suddenly Sakura began to laugh, returning to her slower pace as she looked down at Sasuke.

"Huh...?" Sasuke managed to get out between moans, the sound of flesh slapping flesh filling the room.

"How annoying would that be?" Sakura asked as she laughed, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Screaming in pleasure, tongue out, eyes rolling back, begging for your cock as if this was some sort of hentai?" she asked with a goofy grin. Sasuke visibly relaxed and began to laugh as well, shaking his head. But their laughing died down as both groaned in pleasure.

Sasuke rolled them so he had her pinned down, kissing and licking at her neck as he began to pound down into her clenching pussy, the Uchiha making sure to sink himself balls deep with each of his thrusts. He began to get curious and ran his hand over her body until it found its way between her legs. The Uchiha sighed against her neck as he began to thumb her clit, Sakura letting out a hiss of pleasure as she wrapped her legs around Sasuke in an attempt to get him as deep as possible. Sasuke smirked a bit as he teased her clit, rubbing it slowly with his thumb as he took one of her nipples into his mouth, licking slowly and even giving it a teasing, gentle bite. As Sakura's walls spasmed around Sasuke's cock, Sakura whined happily as she began to cum, holding Sasuke tightly. Sasuke sank deep and began to cum as well, flooding the woman with his seed. As their orgasms died down, the two held each other close as they simply rested in bed. But Sakura soon could feel the Uchiha return to full hardness. It appeared Sasuke's stamina in battle matched his stamina in bed, Sakura thought as she caught her breath. Well, if Sasuke was still in the mood...

Sakura moved so she was on her hands and knees, her ass facing Sasuke. She wiggled a little before looking back shyly, spreading her cheeks with one hand to show what she meant. Sasuke stared quietly at her asshole, his cock throbbing at the sight. Was she really offering her...?

"Sasuuuuke, don't make me embarrass myself," Sakura whined, shaking her ass once more. "We can go again, ya know," she pointed out shyly. Though Sakura had obviously never had anal sex before she had touched that area during masturbation and had thought it felt good. Sure, touching there alone wasn't enough to make her cum, but it did feel oddly good. Still, Sakura felt really embarrassed about asking Sasuke to penetrate her there and briefly considered backing out. But then she felt the tip of the Uchiha's cock press against her anus.

"Relax," Sasuke murmured as he rubbed against her hole, his cock throbbing as he thought about how tight she would feel around his cock. It was funny. Before they had begun, Sasuke didn't bother with sexual thoughts. Yet now, as the Uchiha slowly began to enter her asshole, all kinds of dirty thoughts rushed through his head, thoughts of what fun they could have together. He wondered if all the wine he had was making him think that way. His thoughts were cut short, however, when he felt himself pressed against Sakura's ass, all 10 inches stuffed up her ass. Sakura let out a whimper, pain mixing with pleasure as her hole tightened and relaxed around Sasuke's shaft, the woman accidentally massaging his cock as she tried to relax. Soon, Sasuke began to move slowly, pulling back until only the first inch was in before he slowly sank back into the heat of her spasming asshole. Though there was pain, Sakura realized she loved every minute of it, moaning out every time she felt Sasuke's dick sinking back in. Soon, the Uchiha gripped her hip and pulled her into his thrusts, leaning over her. Sakura turned her head and the two began kissing, Sasuke slipping his tongue into her mouth.

When their kiss ended Sakura shyly reached back and used both hands to spread her cheeks, making it much easier for the Uchiha to fuck her hole, his cock pumping quickly. He bit her shoulder lightly and let out a growl of pleasure.

But suddenly the Uchiha pulled out, smirking down at his girlfriend.

"Sakura, could you bend over the bed for me...?" he asked. Without waiting, Sakura moved and did as she was told, resting her face against the bed, reaching back once more to spread her cheeks as much as she could. She nearly squeeled when Sasuke stuffed his cock back up her ass. Soon, Sasuke began to spank the pink haired woman, each slap causing her hole to tighten greatly for several seconds before it would relax once more. With the spanking, Sasuke made Sakura's asshole massage his aching shaft, switching from slow spanks to fast. But soon enough, the Uchiha sank balls deep and let out a moan as he began to flood her bowels with his massive load, shot after shot filling her spasming asshole. To Sakura's surprised she came as well, cumming much harder than she had expected. She wondered if it had anything to do with the way Sasuke mixed pain and pleasure, or had told her what to do. She'd have to look into that later, when a large cock wasn't stuffed deep up her ass.

When Sasuke finally pulled out, he helped the woman into bed, both looking tired as they held each other. It didn't take long at all for them to drift off to sleep.

Sasuke woke hours later to the sound of Sakura screaming for him. He shot up in bed, his head pounding. What...? The Uchiha became embarrassed as memories of the previous night came rushing back to him. Dressing quickly, Sasuke forced the thoughts away and rushed out to the living room where Sakura had called for him. But when he arrived, he froze and stared.

On the couch a man slept. He was about as tall as Sasuke, maybe just slightly taller. His hair was wild and long, being a reddish-brown color and he had on a black long-sleeved shirt as well as black pants, though he had no sandles like a ninja would. The man appeared to be in a deep sleep, breathing softly and slowly. As Sasuke stared, many questions rushed through his mind. But as he stepped closer to the couch, he said only one thing.

"Indra Otsutsuki..."


	6. Home?

Indra Otsutsuki. A man of seemingly limitless power, legendary for his skill in battle. Known as the father of the Uchiha clan, the man seemed unmatched in his power. Or that's what Sasuke had thought ever since learning about the man.

And yet the man remained asleep on the couch in front of Sasuke, the Otsutsuki man breathing weakly as he slept. Taking a second look over the man Sasuke noticed a few things. Indra seemed to be having trouble breathing and seemed pale, sweat on his face. Indra's breath paused briefly, the Otsutsuki man going motionless before he started breathing again.

Sasuke shook the thoughts away as he felt Sakura place a hand on his arm. He looked over and when their eyes met both suddenly felt awkward as they thought of the previous night. They stared for a moment before looking back to Indra, unable to keep each other's gaze. Sakura cleared her throat, her face feeling warm as she knelt down by the couch to check the sleeping man, wanting to make sure he was alright. But her mood suddenly shifted when it finally clicked that this was THE Indra.

"Wait, this bastard ripped your arm off!" Sakura shouted as she quickly stood. Her head pounded, the woman very hungover. She clenched her fists and aimed a punch down at Indra, letting her anger win out. But before she could hit the man her wrist was grabbed tightly. She looked down at Indra, the man holding her fist an inch from his face. His eyes were still shut but he was now awake. He pushed her fist away and coughed a few times, his throat feeling dry. He felt exhausted and hungry. But he didn't mind at all. He was alive.

"Don't bother trying to hit me. It'll never work," Indra finally spoke. His voice was deep, more so than Madara's voice had been. His eyes slowly opened to show his Sharingan and the man weakly sat up, coughing more. "Water."

Sasuke watched the two quietly as they talked but when Indra asked for water her walked off to the kitchen and grabbed a glass, starting to fill it. He watched the glass filling but dropped it into the sink when he heard a crash from the living room. When he went out to check he saw the couch was broke in half, Indra crouched on the arm of one half. Sakura raised her fist at him and narrowed her eyes.

"You jackass, why'd you take his arm?!" she yelled, demanding an answer. "Do you know how hard it is to make a brand new arm?!" Indra watched her silently for several seconds before he hopped off the couch and stood, staring at the woman with cold eyes.

"It was for the best," was all Indra would tell her. He seemed almost bored at her anger. When he noticed Sasuke returned he glanced over. "My heir didn't attempt to attack me, so just drop it, Haruno." Sakura glanced at Sasuke with an annoyed look in her eyes and Sasuke held his hand up in defense.

"Sakura, there'd be no point in me attacking him," Sasuke pointed out before clearing his throat, directing his attention back to Indra. Sakura and Sasuke watched as the man cleared his throat.

"Yes, well..." Indra began. He froze, having to place his hand on the broken couch to balance himself. He took a weak breath and coughed a few times, blood coming from his mouth. He wiped it away and looked at the blood on the back of his hand. When Sakura saw the blood she took a deep breath and groaned. She was pissed at the man, but the doctor in her couldn't just stand around when someone coughed up blood. She went over and sighed.

"You need a hospital," Sakura told him in a serious tone. "You've been dead a long time and just woke up. I'm sure your body will need rest before it's back to full health."

Indra narrowed his eyes and shook his head.

"I've never needed a hospital. Not starting now."

Sakura gritted her teeth.

"You were DEAD. You need a hospital, to make sure you won't just drop dead again right away," Sakura repeated slowly. Indra stared down at her with his own cold look and shook his head.

"I said no. Now, where are we?"

Instead of answering, Sakura swept Indra's feet out from under the Otsutsuki men and knocked him on his back before she placed a foot on his chest and twisted his arm, holding it right before the breaking point. Indra grabbed her arm and knocked her over, a cracking sound coming from his arm. He quickly pinned her with an arm to her throat, his Sharingan spinning as he stared down at her.

"Try that again and you'll regret it," Indra whispered in her face.

Sakura wrapped her legs around his waist and used her strength to flip him, slamming him headfirst into the floor. She quickly pinned him on his back and placed on hand on his throat, the other raised in a fist if she needed to hit him.

"You're going to the hospital, you jackass," Sakura whispered back. She punched him in the face hard, but as soon as her hand hit him she pulled back, hurt, pain shooting through her hand. Punching the man had felt like punching metal! Indra took Sakura's moment of pain to quickly knock her off of him before he got up to tackle her. Sakura refocused on the fight and grabbed part of the broken couch, smacking Indra across the head with it before she tackled him back down, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Stay down, damn it! You're too weak to win, so just give up and come with us!" Indra tried sitting back up, vision blurry from the hit, but Sakura pushed him back down. He finally had to admit he was too weak to argue and so he finally gave a single nod.

"Very well. It seems I'm not well, hm. So I'll go, but I'll be leaving quickly," Indra finally agreed though he didn't seem too pleased with it. Sakura let go of him and got up, looking towards Sasuke with a nervous grin. Sasuke simply shrugged and sighed, placing a hand against his forehead. Their arguing was making his hangover worse, his head pounding. He took a deep breath and gave a slight nod, motioning outside.

"Fine, I'll try opening a portal to get to Konoha." Sasuke paused before adding, "My head is killing me, so no promises. Let's wash up and then we can head out."

An hour later Sasuke, Sakura and Indra stood outside. Sasuke shut his normal eye, his Rinnesharingan open wide. They stood for a full minute before a portal finally opened. It flickered a bit and almost shut but Sasuke managed to open it back up, though he was having trouble. He clenched his teeth and motioned that the portal was ready. The three soon stepped up to the flickering portal and quickly stepped through right before it closed. When they stepped out, they were in the middle of Konoha, the sun high in the sky. Sasuke looked around slowly, taking a breath of fresh air. Though he loved his private world, sunlight was still great.

"Let's stop by the store real quick," Sakura suddenly said, rubbing her head with a soft sigh. "We can pick up some Excedrin for our headaches, then we'll go to the hospital," Sakura explained, glancing at Sasuke for his opinion. The Uchiha looked away and gave a nod. Sakura frowned, rubbing the back of her head. Why were they feeling so awkward? Sure, they did...things...when drunk, but...

"Let's quit wasting time," Indra spoke, snapping Sakura out of her thoughts. Sakura glared at the man warningly before she began walking, Sasuke and Indra following behind, Indra with a slight limp. As they walked, people stared, some with hate in their eyes and some with love. Sasuke noticed this and frowned, stepping up next to Sakura. Looking ahead, he tapped her hand and motioned with a nod at the people staring.

"Yeah...I noticed too. I'm not sure what's going on," Sakura commented with her own frown. Some people were glaring at her, but the same people would smile at Sasuke. What the hell had happened since they left the village?! She shook the thoughts away and grumbled a little as they arrived at the store.

Once they stepped inside the store, Indra raised a brow as he looked around. He studied the lights, saw the drinks cooling in the fridges and glanced at the fan on the counter up front. These things were unkown to the Otsutsuki man. He stepped over to the strange box that had drinks in it and placed his hand on the glass. It was very cold to the touch, Indra noted. He studied it with his Sharingan and hummed a bit before he walked away to study the fan. He kneeled a little to be level with it and studied it with his Sharingan. He could see the blades of the fan as it spun and was curious as the air blew in his face. He tapped the metal before standing and looking up at the fan on the ceiling. It spun just as fast as the fan on the counter but wobbled from the speed. He reached up to inspect it when Sakura spoke next to him.

"If you're done being a weirdo, we need to pay for our waters and the pills."

Indra studied the fan a moment longer before turning his attention to the pink haired woman. He stepped out of her way, motioning for her to take his place.

"Very well."

Sasuke stepped up first and set the waters down on the counter. He reached into his bag for money but the woman at the counter quickly shook her head.

"Oh! No, Uchiha-san! For you, it's free!" the woman promised with a warm smile. Sasuke paused, hand in his bag before he slowly reached out and took the waters, looking very confused. He didn't complain much however. Free was free, after all.

"Is there some sort of deal going on today?" Sakura asked with a polite smile as she set the bottle of pills down. She flinched, however, when the woman glared at her, eyes full of hatred. "Uh...I'm sorry, did I do something wrong?" Sakura asked with a frown.

"Just pay and get out of my store, freak," the woman muttered and held out her hand for the money. Sakura frowned but slowly handed over the needed money, taking the bottle quickly. Sasuke stepped up though, getting angry at the woman's attitude to Sakura.

"What the hell is your problem? Sakura has done more for this village then you ever will, so get rid of the attitude," Sasuke warned, slapping his own money down onto the counter. He turned to leave, freezing when the woman spoke.

"Uchiha Sasuke, your father will be hearing about this!"

Sasuke slowly turned to face the woman and lunged at her, snarling. "My father is dead!" he pointed out. Indra quickly caught Sasuke, pulling him back before looking to the woman.

"He's drunk," Indra explained before taking Sasuke outside, shoving Sasuke out the door. Sakura quickly followed, frowning as she looked at Sasuke. What the hell was going on?

"You can't attack people for insulting your girlfriend and mentioning your dead dad," Indra told Sasuke in a strict voice, crossing his arms.

"Fuck off, Indra," Sasuke muttered. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now." The Uchiha then turned to Sakura. "Let's just get to the hospital. The sooner we get Indra checked out, we can leave again." Sakura opened her mouth to reply but Sasuke walked off without waiting. Sakura stood silently with Indra, the older man staring at her with arms crossed.

"We better catch up before Uchiha snaps at someone else," Indra said and began to walk as well. Sakura sighed and followed, opening the bottle before swallowing one of the pills before putting it away. When she and Indra arrived at the hospital Sasuke was already there, leaning against the wall waiting for them. He waved to them and stood up, motioning to the hospital.

"This place has the same glowing lights, hm," Indra noted as he looked at the large glowing red cross. Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose and took a breath.

"Sasuke, can you make sure Indra acts slightly normal when we go in?" Sakura muttered and took another breath. Sasuke glanced at Indra then back at Sakura, shrugging. The three then walked in and Sakura went to the front desk, putting on a smile as she saw one of her work friends. She was around Sakura's height with dark red hair, the woman wearing glasses. Sakura walked up, almost dragging Indra with her.

"Hey! Do you think we can get a hospital room real quick? This jackass needs a room, just a quick check to see if he's fine," Sakura explained.

"You don't seem to like me," Indra commented.

"Indra, shut up."

Sakura turned back to the woman with a smile. Her smile slowly died though as the woman, Mito, let out an annoyed breath.

"Yes, Dr. Haruno. Give me five minutes."

Mito then walked off, leaving Indra and Sasuke standing next to a confused Sakura.

"...Do I have something offensive written on my face?" Sakura asked as they waited. "Everyone keeps glaring at me." Sasuke glanced over and studied her with his Sharingan before shrugging and looking around the hospital.

"Could be your attitude," Indra offered.

Sakura chose to ignore Indra, not wanting to start a fight in her hospital. Sakura shook the thoughts away as Mito returned. The woman handed Sakura a note before she walked off again. Sakura blinked then looked at the note.

"Looks like we got a room. 103," Sakura explained as she put the note away and began walking. She paused when she noticed the two men weren't following her. Turning back, she found Sasuke simply sitting in the waiting room, relaxing in his chair of choice with his eyes shut and head back. Indra was simply staring at Sakura in silence as if he was remembering something. Sakura walked up and snapped her fingers multiple times in his face to get his attention. Indra slowly looked down at her.

"Indra, please don't make me regret bringing you here. Now follow." With that, Sakura began to walk again. This time, Indra began to follow her in silence. When they entered the hospital room Sakura pointed at the hospital bed. Indra stared at it for several seconds before looking at Sakura.

"Sit," Sakura said with a sigh. Indra remained standing, staring at the woman.

"Neither of us wishes to be here. So let's get this over with," Indra pointed out. "You hate me, so let's not waste time." Indra finally took a seat on the edge of the bed.

"O...kay," Sakura replied slowly before sighing and nodding. "Okay, well, I'm just going to check to see if your heart and lungs are fine. See if you need to stay here, or if you can leave right away." With that, Sakura searched through a drawer. When she found what she needed she let out an 'ah!'. Pulling out a blue scroll, Sakura sent chakra into it and soon the scroll transformed into a stethoscope. She quickly put it on and moved back to Indra. As she began to examine him, the pink haired woman slowly got a confused look on her face. She glanced at Indra and frowned some as she pulled back and sat down in her chair.

"Your heartbeat is very quick. That, or..." Sakura began but trailed off, shaking her head. "There's no way you could have two hearts, right?" she asked. Indra just stared at her and soon Sakura looked shocked. "Wait, seriously?" she asked.

"Hm, perhaps. The Otsutsuki clan isn't exactly made up of normal people. You know this from Kaguya, yes?"

Sakura stared at the Otsutsuki man for several seconds as she tried to decide what to do. She was very curious now and wanted to check as much as she could, curious to see if the man's body was different than that of a normal person. She was very curious. Kaguya had horns and a third eye. If Indra was anything like his grandmother, or father even, how much different was his body from hers? Sakura hummed as she thought it over, her head tilting to the head as she stared at the man. What would she learn from examining this man? She opened her mouth to ask about it but Indra simply shook his head.

"Not a lab rat," was all he said.

"Huh? I didn't even say anything!" Sakura shouted. Indra simply tapped at his eye and gave a slight smirk.

"These eyes of mine see all," was all he said.

"Would you stop talking so cryptic?!" Sakura took a breath to calm her temper before she set the stethoscope down, shaking her head. "Well, anyways, if you won't let me do check more, not much else I can do for now. So, unless you suddenly drop, I guess you're fine. Just very. Very. Old." Indra stared coldly before he stood up and shrugged, walking out of the room with the woman. They soon returned to Sasuke in the waiting room, Sakura waving when she saw the man. Sasuke looked up and offered a small smile before opening his mouth to answer.

But before he could answer, a child ran into the hospital, panting heavily as he tried to catch his breath.

"Big brother!" the boy finally shouted as he ran up to Sasuke. The boy looked a lot like Sasuke had looked at eight, though this boy had a warm smile and kind eyes. He had black hair like Sasuke as well, though it was cut short and styled like Shisui Uchiha's hair. The child had on a blue shirt with the Uchiha crest on the back and grey shorts. Over his shoulder he had a messenger back.

Sasuke stared silently at the child for several long seconds, Sakura staring at the Uchiha crest on the back of the boy's shirt. Sasuke had on a blank look though inside many questions were running through his head. Who was this child? Why did he call him brother? There was no way he could be his brother! Sasuke had watched Mikoto die. Unless this boy had been a secret child long lost, then there was no possible way they could be related. And even then, the boy's age didn't match up. After a quick look over Sasuke guessed the boy was no older than eight or nine years old.

When Sasuke didn't respond, the boy shifted slightly with an uncomfortable look on his face.

"Uh...nii-san...?" the boy questioned nervously as he waved a hand in his face. Sasuke finally reacted, taking a deep breath before he looked back at the child.

"Who are you?" Sasuke finally asked.

The child's uncomfortable look quickly became confused.

"Huh...? I'm your brother! Nii-san, you're acting really weird today..."

Sasuke took another deep breath.

"What is your name?" Sasuke asked slowly.

"Uh...Youta Uchiha..." the boy said slowly, scratching the back of his head with a confused frown. "Nii-san, are you feeling okay? You're being weird." The boy, Youta, looked towards Sakura and smiled happily. "Oh! Maybe Sakura-san can help you out! She's always really good at fixing problems. Like this one time, after Shisui-sensei tried helping me learn to throw shuriken, I got hurt and Sakura-san helped me out. I mean, being the Fourth's daughter, of course she-" Youta stopped when Sasuke quickly stood.

"Kid, where'd you come from?" Sasuke asked quickly, Sakura staring in confusion. Did he just say Sakura's dad was the Fourth Hokage...?

"What? I just left the compound, nii-san. Mama had another set of letters for me to deliver so I headed out and saw you were back! I tried catching up but I lost you guys at the store," Youta explained as he gave a shy grin. "I managed to catch up, though!" After giving his explaination, the boy looked up at the clock. His eyes widened and he quickly turned and began to run, calling back, "Sorry, nii-san, Sakura-san! I gotta get these letters delivered or I'll be in big trouble!"

When the child had left the hospital, Indra slowly turned to Sasuke, a dead-serious look on his face.

"Sasuke. When you opened the portal, did you lose focus? Even for a single second?" Indra questioned slowly. Sasuke frowned a little but finally gave a nod.

"Only for a moment. My head was pounding. When the portal almost shut, that's when I lost focus. But briefly. Why?"

Indra crossed his arms and sighed.

"Losing focus while using a jutsu like that, even for a moment, can send you to the wrong location. This seems to be Konoha, but if that boy is an Uchiha like he seems...Then this can't be the right place. The clan I fathered was slaughtered years ago. Hm...besides, he called Sakura the daughter of the Fourth. You messed up, Sasuke." Sasuke stared at Indra for several seconds, thinking it over. Slowly, a thought came to him. If that boy came from the compound like he said...

Sasuke suddenly took off running, leaving Sakura and Indra at the hospital. He rushed through the village, barely managing to dodge people on his way, almost knocking over a few people. He soon saw the compound and came to a halt, sliding several feet before he managed to stop fully. The compound looked clean and well maintained, the buildings in perfect condition. Not only that, but Sasuke saw a few people walking around the place, each person having the crest of the Uchiha clan on their backs. Walking slowly now, Sasuke made his way to his house. He stopped at the door and stood motionless, his hand extended slightly. Slowly, Sasuke opened the door. Inside, he could see to the kitchen. At the table sat three people. Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi, the three eating in silence. Sasuke stepped inside and slowly shut the door, staring in a shocked silence.

The sound of the door shutting got Mikoto's attention and the woman looked up to see who it was. When she saw Sasuke she slowly smiled, a warm, loving look in her eyes as she stood from her chair, going to her son.

"Welcome home, Sasuke," Mikoto greeted as she pulled Sasuke into a hug, the younger Uchiha's eyes slowly widening.

"I'm...home?"

Sakura quickly left the hospital, Indra following right behind. When they stepped outside Sakura looked toward the Hokage Stone Monument and stared.

"Oh no...not again..." she whispered.

On the mountain, where Minato Namikaze's face should be, Kizashi Haruno's was instead.

"What is it?" Indra questioned as he looked to the stone faces as well. He studied them with his Sharingan to make sure it was real before looking back to Sakura.

"A few years ago, 'Madara', or as we found out he was really Obito, showed up in the village. He used a jutsu and me and Naruto ended up in a sort of...dream world, I guess. In that world, my father was the fourth Hokage and both my parents were dead. Naruto's family was alive. We were supposed to just blend in until we could figure out how to get out. Naruto started to enjoy the world, though. I mean, how could he not? He finally had a family...But in the end, we finally were able to leave. Is this what's happening now...?"

Indra looked around them, studying the houses and people around them. They were all real, he could tell, so they weren't in a Genjutsu.

"This world is real," Indra concluded finally.

"Are you sure? I mean, you just woke up. Maybe you're wrong-"

"I'm not," Indra cut in coldly and shook his head. Sakura glared at the man, feeling a rush of annoyance run through her at how cocky the man was speaking. "This world is real. If we're in Konoha, it's not our Konoha," Indra added.

"If the Uchiha are alive here...that'd mean Sasuke's family is likely alive, so..." Sakura paused and frowned, looking worried suddenly. "We need to get to Sasuke. The longer we stay here the less like it is he'll want to leave."

Indra gave a nod and followed Sakura, the two rushing through the village towards the compound. When they arrived, Sakura threw open the door and stepped in.

"Sasuke, these people aren't your real family-" Sakura began, freezing as she saw Sasuke sitting at the kitchen table next to Itachi, Sasuke sitting with a dazed look on his face. Indra stepped inside and stared at the group at the table, a scowl on his face.

"So you're joining these fakes, hm?" Indra questioned and shook his head. "I expected you to know better, Sasuke."


	7. Changes

Sasuke and Indra stared at each other, eyes narrowed. There was a long, tense silence between them before Indra finally spoke again.

"Well, Sasuke? Are we leaving now, or do I have to force you?" Indra asked quietly. Sasuke stared in silence for a few more seconds before he glanced back toward Itachi, Mikoto and Fugaku. "Look at me, boy," Indra quickly added and Sasuke looked back with a glare. "Are we leaving?" Indra asked again. His voice was serious and had a warning tone to it.

"You can't make us leave, Indra," Sasuke finally pointed out. "You're too weak right now to open up a portal yourself. And you're too weak to force me to do it. So...we're staying, Indra," Sasuke decided quietly.

"You are going to regret us staying here, Sasuke. We don't belong," was all Indra said in reply before stepping back and shaking his head. Sasuke opened his mouth to reply but instead just shook his head and moved back to the table, sitting next to Itachi.

"Will the two of you be joining us? We have plenty of food," Mikoto offered politely. Sakura frowned a little but let out a long sigh and finally gave a nod. She moved to the large table and sat next to Sasuke, rubbing her eyes slowly. When Indra didn't move at all, Mikoto frowned a little. "Sasuke, who's your friend?" she asked. Sasuke tensed a little as he glanced back at Indra.

"He's not...I mean, we're not exactly friends. It's complicated. He's Indra Otsutsuki," Sasuke explained slowly.

At Sasuke's words, Fugaku stopped eating and stared at the Otsutsuki man.

"THE Indra Otsutsuki?" Fugaku questioned. "I thought the father of our clan died long ago."

Before Sasuke could explain Indra simply shook his head.

"I'm back now," Indra said calmly. Finally he moved over and took a seat, glaring toward Sasuke. "And you are Fugaku Uchiha. You got my clan killed, yes?" Indra questioned. Fugaku glanced at Sasuke with a confused look before returning his focus to Indra.

"Uh...I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't understand, Indra," Fugaku said slowly as he shifted in his chair. "As you can see, the clan is doing just fine. Great, in fact." There was a awkward silence after that as they ate. The silence ended when the door opened again.

"Mama! I got all the letters delivered in time!"

The boy they met at the hospital, Youta Uchiha, came running into the kitchen with a happy grin on his face. He found an empty seat by Indra and sat in it, setting his messenger bag on the ground next to the chair. Indra slowly looked at Youta and offered a small smile.

"Youta, this is Indra. THE Indra," Fugaku explained.

"Oh, I met him earlier! ...Sort of. I didn't get his name, though. We met at the hospital."

"Hello, little Uchiha," Indra greeted. Sakura and Sasuke were surprised to find Indra's tone wasn't as cold as it usually was. When Indra found Sakura staring at him, he quickly glared. "Do you need something, Haruno?" Sakura sighed. His tone was cold once more.

"Nothing, Indra. Nothing at all. Just surprised you know how to be polite," Sakura explained with a shrug as she glared back.

"He's a child. I have no reason to be anything other than nice to him."

"And to me and Sasuke?"

"You haven't given me much reason to be polite. Sasuke messed up yet again, with the portal, and now refuses to go. And you?" Indra shook his head. "Just drop it, Haruno."

Mikoto and Fugaku glanced at each other but said nothing. The room became silent once more, until Youta spoke up.

"Sakura-san, how do you have two arms again? I thought you lost one during the war?"

Sakura blinked and glanced at Sasuke with a confused look. Sasuke looked away and just shrugged and so Sakura looked back at Youta.

"Oh...well...Medical jutsus?" she offered with a nervous chuckle.

Itachi sipped at his water quietly before he set his glass down, staring at Sakura and Sasuke. He studied them with his Sharingan and hummed softly before shaking his head.

"Could I speak with the two of you later, when you have time?" Itachi questioned.

Sasuke blinked but gave a nod. Sakura seemed unsure but gave a nod as well.

"Uh, yeah, sure thing Itachi," Sakura replied with a smile. Itachi gave a small nod and went back to his drink.

"So, what portal did Sasuke mess up?" Fugaku questioned with a raised brow. "I've never seen my son mess up a Rinnesharingan jutsu. Something happen?"

"Sasuke is very hungover right now," was all Indra would say to Fugaku.

At his words, Mikoto and Fugaku looked at each other with shocked expressions before turning their attention to Sasuke. Their son had been drinking? That was something they'd never had to deal with before. Mikoto stared at her son with worry in her eyes. Sasuke stared back and forced a small smile.

"Sasuke...What's wrong? Why were you drinking?" Mikoto questioned. Sasuke glanced at Sakura but quickly looked away, feeling a little embarrassed as he thought of their night together. He took a breath and shrugged.

"I was just trying to relax," Sasuke admitted. "I've had quite the week."

"But...Why were you drinking during such an important mission?" Fugaku questioned and shook his frown, a tone of disapproval in his voice. Sasuke glanced over at Fugaku and stared at him with an annoyed look in his eyes.

Itachi set his glass down and let out a soft sigh.

"It's because this isn't the Sakura or Sasuke we know," Itachi pointed out. "Am I correct?" Itachi asked as he looked at Sasuke. Sasuke hesitated before finally giving a small nod. Instantly, Fugaku stood and pulled out a kunai.

"Then who are you? Where's the real Sasuke?" Fugaku demanded. Itachi looked at his father with a small glare, his Mangekyou flashing into his eyes.

"Father, don't suddenly pretend you're worried about our Sasuke," Itachi said as he stood. "Listen, let me talk to them. They might not be OUR Sasuke and Sakura, but they are still Sasuke and Sakura. Youta looked around the table with a confused frown.

"Huh...? What do you mean, nii-san?" Youta asked Itachi. "Why wouldn't dad care?"

Itachi's Mangekyou faded as he heard his brother's voice. He turned to the boy and offered a small smile.

"Sorry, Youta. It's nothing you need to worry about right now," Itachi replied kindly.

"Hey, no fair!" Youta complained as he crossed his arms.

"If you promise to calm down, I'll teach you a cool trick later. Sound good to you?" Itachi offered. Youta grumbled but didn't complain any further, simply going back to drinking his orange juice. Fugaku still stood, glaring a little bit at Sasuke and Sakura.

"Sit down and put that kunai away," Indra finally ordered as he stood, his Sharingan spinning quickly as he glared at Fugaku. "I might not show it, but Sasuke is my heir, and so if you threaten him I will make you regret it." Fugaku looked at Indra slowly and stared back, his own Sharingan activating and spinning. Indra narrowed his eyes more. "You want to do this is front of your kid?" Indra questioned, motioning toward Youta. "Just sit and calm down. Put the kunai away." Fugaku stared for several more seconds before he finally sat, slowly putting the kunai back. Indra sat seconds later with his arms crossed. Fugaku was silent for several seconds before turning his attention to Sasuke.

"Look...I'm sorry. I'm just protective of my sons. Seeing a second Sasuke, I thought maybe you did something to look like that, or...But no, you're Sasuke, aren't you." Fugaku frowned, shaking his head. "I'm sorry."

Sasuke looked at him with a glare before sighing.

"Yeah," Sasuke finally replied. "I've survived worse than being threatened with a small kunai. It's fine." Sasuke offered a tiny smile. "If someone claimed to be from another world, I might doubt it too if I didn't have this eye." Sasuke rubbed his head and sighed. "Do you want us to find somewhere else to stay?" Sasuke asked.

Before Fugaku could answer, Mikoto shook her head and smiled warmly.

"You might be from another world, but you're still our son. We have enough room here for you guys to stay," Mikoto promised. Sasuke stared at Mikoto and slowly smiled at her. It was...A little weird, talking to his mother again. Sure, this Mikoto Uchiha didn't give birth to him. Yet, after just meeting him, she already considered him her son. Sasuke's focus returned to Mikoto when she added, "Right, Fugaku?" Sasuke glanced over at Fugaku slowly.

Without hesitation, Fugaku gave a nod and chuckled.

"Of course they can stay. Again, sorry for pulling a kunai on you."

Sasuke gave a nod and rubbed his eyes before letting out a soft sigh. Mikoto watched Sasuke before she frowned and stood up again, motioning for them to follow her.

"If you arrived using that eye, I'm guessing you're tired...plus the...hangover. You guys can get some rest and then Itachi can talk to you later. Follow me." Sasuke, Sakura and Indra stood quietly and followed the Uchiha matriarch. They walked in silence, leaving the kitchen to follow the woman. They stopped after passing several doors and Mikoto nodded.

"Sasuke, you can have this room for as long as you guys are staying. Sakura, you can have the room across from Sasuke. And Indra, the other spare room is just a few doors down from Sakura's room."

"Thank you," Sasuke said as he opened his given room and stepped in, studying it with his Sharingan. It felt a little weird to him, living in a house again that had people.

"Thank you, Mikoto-san," Sakura said politely and stepped into her own room. She went to the bed and fell into it, sighing softly as she closed her eyes.

Indra moved to his given room and gave Mikoto a small nod as thanks before he silently entered. He looked around the room slowly, checking everything with his Sharingan. He turned his head to look back at Mikoto when he felt her step up behind him.

"Is something wrong, Indra-san? The room is perfectly fine, I assure you."

"Nothing wrong, hm," was all Indra replied before he moved over to the bed. Mikoto gave a nod and left the man alone, softly shutting the door to give him privacy. Indra sat on the edge of the bed and closed his eyes, shaking his head before laying down and shutting his eyes, falling asleep slowly.

 **Indra Otsutsuki stared down at one of Asura's men, Indra giving a glare as he placed his foot on his chest. Indra's wife, Shachi Uchiha, stood next to him. The woman watched with anger in her eyes. Indra kept the man down and studied him with his Sharingan, humming a bit before he spoke.**

 **"Asura's people don't usually travel alone. There are more, aren't there? No matter...I'll just have to kill the others before they can report our location to Asura." Without any hesitation Indra slowly sank his blade into the man's heart, pinning him to the grass. Seconds after the man died, three more men came running from the forest. They stopped when they saw Indra standing from their dead friend, Shachi standing next to him. The Otsutsuki man tilted his head as he studied the men before he glared and wiped blood off his face.**

 **"You finally caught up. But, you were too late. Unfortunately for you, I can't allow you to live. You'd just tell Asura where we are and more people will come...I can't risk that when my wife could give birth any day now."**

 **The leader of the scouting party, a young woman with long red hair, raised her hands and shook her head.**

 **"We're just here for Shachi. Asura wants to invite her back, so we're here to bring her home. Just let us take her and we promise she'll be safe," the woman promised in a soft voice. The man to her left was glaring at Indra, the man to her right placing his hand on the hilt of his katana.**

 **"After the hell Asura and his men put Shachi through? You aren't touching her," Indra snapped back and shook his head. "After all of you..." Indra shook the thoughts away and glared at the woman. "You aren't taking her. Even if you could, what makes you think Shachi'd even go back? She hates you people. Hell, my darling wife has KILLED many of your people."**

 **"Let's just talk this over. My name is Hotaru. If we could just talk..."**

 **Indra shook his head and pulled his blade out of the dead man's heart.**

 **"Like I said, you are not touching Shachi. I'm sorry, Hotaru. But I'm going to have to kill you and your men," Indra said quietly, shaking his head. He raised his sword and pointed it toward Hotaru. "I'm sorry."**

 **Hotaru kept her hands up, shaking her head slowly.**

 **"You don't have to kill us. Your eyes...the Sharingan, it can hypnotize people, yes? You could make us forget seeing you. You could send us on our way. Nobody has to die today."**

 **Indra watched her with his Sharingan spinning. He studied her posture, watched her stare right in his eyes without looking away. He slowly lowered his sword, deciding that he would give Hotaru a chance. He glanced over at Shachi to see what she thought. Shachi studied Hotaru before looking back at Indra, giving a very small nod.**

 **"When I was with Asura, Hotaru was a good person. We can trust her," Shachi finally decided.**

 **Indra set his katana in place on his back, slowly nodding.**

 **"Okay, Hotaru, we'll try things your-"**

 **Before Indra could finish his sentence, he heard a pained sound coming from Shachi. He quickly turned his head and stared quietly. A single knife was stuck into her stomach, thrown from one of Hotaru's men. Indra slowly looked back at Hotaru and her men, his Mangekyou flashing into his eyes as he glared, pure hate in his eyes.**

 **"Wait, that wasn't-" Hotaru began. But Indra refused to listen. In a blind rage, he attacked her and the two men. When Indra regained focus, the three were dead. Indra quickly ran back to his wife and pulled the knife out, staring in shock at all the blood.**

 **"I...Indra...the kids...We...We need to..." Shachi began.**

 **Without saying anything, Indra gave a nod and got ready to try helping her birth the children.**

 **It took nearly an hour.**

 **Indra stared down at his bloody hands, his eyes wide as his Sharingan spun, burning the image into his mind. He slowly looked over to his left, two small bodies lying motionless. Indra opened his mouth to say something but quickly shut it, glancing toward his wife. Shachi stared back at him with a tired, hurt look in her eyes. Tears rolled down her face as she tried sitting up. Too weak, she let herself lay back down and just cried as she stared up at the sky.**

 **For months Indra and Shachi had been waiting, both very excited and happy, to meet their children. And now, because Indra decided to give Asura's men a chance...**

 **Indra took a shaky breath as he moved to Shachi, wiping her tears away with bloody hands. He helped her sit up and moved her so she could lean against him. Tears in his eyes, Indra hugged the woman weakly and stared over at the small bodies. Again, thanks to his Sharingan, the sight of his first two children dying would forever haunt him. His son and daughter, dead at birth. Indra forced himself to look away, turning his focus back to his wife.**

 **"Shachi...we...We have to..." he began.**

 **"Just...Just do it...I can't watch, Indra..." she whispered back, unable to look. Indra slowly set her back down and moved over to his children, picking them up slowly before he stood. He made a single clone to take care of Shachi. Taking another deep breath, Indra walked into the forest. When he was deep enough in he gently set his children down and closed his eyes. His hands shook and it took several minutes to calm himself down enough to do a few simple handsigns. Using Wood Style, Indra made a simple shovel and stood.**

 **"I'm so sorry," Indra whispered almost pleadingly as he began to dig. He dug two small graves before slowly setting the bodies inside. When the dirt was moved back into place, Indra stood leaning on the shovel, staring with a blank look in his eyes at the graves. He stood in the forest for over an hour, unable to make himself leave. His sorrow eventually turned to anger at himself, the Otsutsuki man letting out a scream as he threw the shovel at a tree. His three tomoe Sharingan spun quickly before it slowly began to change. It became a spiral design, his right eye bleeding as his Mangekyou was activated. Indra let out another scream as he began attacking the trees. Punches, kicks, whatever jutsu came to his mind, nothing around him was spared. When he finally stopped attacking, Indra fell to his knees in front of the small graves, blood dripping from his eye onto the dirt of his daughter's grave. "I'm so sorry..." Indra whispered again.**

 **When Indra finally left the forest hours later, the sun had set and he found his way back thanks to the light of the moon. When he stepped out of the forest, he had a blank look on his face and his Mangekyou in his eyes. He made his way to his wife and kneeled by her, speaking seriously and barely above a whisper.**

 **"This will never happen again, my Eternal Beauty. Nobody else will die from this day on and we'll no longer have to always be on the run." Indra paused and placed his hand on the ground, looking around. "We'll make a home here, and one day the name Uchiha will be known...We will have revenge..." he promised, pulling the woman into a hug. "The...graves...do you have names for me to put?" he whispered. Shachi was silent for several seconds before she gave a weak nod.**

 **"Their names will be..."**

Indra's eyes slowly opened as he heard someone knocking at his bedroom door. He stared at the ceiling in silence, his spiral Mangekyou in his eyes for several seconds before it slowly faded back to the normal three tomoe Sharingan.

"Indra," he heard Sakura calling as she knocked a few more times. "Wake up."

Indra kept staring at the ceiling for a few more seconds before he forced himself to get up and go to the door. He opened it just enough to see Sakura.

"What is it?" he questioned.

"Itachi wants to have that talk now. Hurry up and meet us outside."

Sakura paused and stared at Indra before she asked, "You looked bothered. You fine?"

Indra stared back at her before simply opening the door and stepping out, motioning for Sakura to lead the way. As they walked, he said, "I was just reminded of something from long ago." Sakura eyed him, waiting for him to explain. When he didn't, she sighed and shook her head.

They stepped out, finding Itachi waiting for them, Sasuke standing next to the Uchiha. Itachi gave a nod when he saw Indra and Sakura before he motioned for them to follow him. Sasuke, Sakura and Indra followed as Itachi began to walk.

"I'll try to explain this world to you," Itachi explained. "That way you can blend in a little for the duration of your stay."

The first stop they made was at a shrine of sorts. There was 10 large statues, each one having a candle burning in front of it as well as fresh flowers placed in front of each statue. Itachi looked at the statues quietly before giving a small bow of respect. When he stood straight once more, he glanced over at Sasuke.

"These people are known as the Uchiha Brave Ten. It was Sasuke's favorite story as a child...Our Sasuke, I mean, of course. On the night that the Kyuubi attacked, ten Uchihas sacrificed their lives to save the village. This group was lead by Uchiha Obito." Itachi motioned to the statue of Obito. "Obito Uchiha, Kyuu Uchiha, Itami Uchiha, Mizu Uchiha, Akira Uchiha, Ryku Uchiha, Koji Uchiha , Ryuu Uchiha , Toshi Uchiha and Tenji Uchiha." Itachi pointed to a statue with each name. "They fought hard to protect the Uchiha clan and Konoha. One by one they died fighting the Kyuubi...In the end, Obito Uchiha helped seal the fox inside of its new host. The Fourth Hokage and his wife died sealing the fox inside their only child, Sakura Haruno." Itachi glanced at Sakura for a moment. "Before that night, the Uchiha clan was slowly being isolated. We were feared for our power...But on that night, because of the Uchiha Brave Ten, the Uchiha clan became heroes. Now, we are trusted and have more power in the village. The Uchiha Police Force...The Hokage's most trusted ANBU are Uchiha as well. Who knows, one day an Uchiha might become Hokage. With how loved the clan has become, it wouldn't surprise me."

"In this world...The Sakura here is Kurama's host?" Sakura questioned slowly and frowned. Itachi gave a small nod.

"Yes, Sakura Haruno is the host of the fox. In fact, Sasuke and Sakura were placed on a team together because of this. His Sharingan kept Sakura in control when she needed it the most," Itachi explained. He frowned a little as he looked at Sasuke and Sakura. "Our Sasuke and Sakura fought during the war. He managed to bring her home, however."

"She left the village? Why?" Sakura questioned quickly, eyes widening in shock.

Itachi watched her quietly for several seconds before shaking his head.

"Let's just say the Uchiha clan isn't as perfect as people believe..." Itachi finally replied. He glanced at Sasuke and studied the younger Uchiha with a soft frown. "Both Sasuke and Sakura had plenty of reasons to leave. But in the end Sakura came back and things have been mostly fine ever since then."

"What happened to your Sasuke...?" Sasuke questioned slowly. Itachi looked at Sasuke again and just shook his head, a dark look coming to his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. But it's not my place to say. All I can tell you is I hope one day Sasuke can change things within the clan. He's the heir, you know. In fact, that's the mission he's currently on. A sort of...diplomatic mission."

"What sort of mission exactly?" Sasuke questioned.

"Our Sasuke is making a deal with a clan that lives a little outside of Konoha. So he's currently in a meeting with the leader of the clan," Itachi explained. With a nod, he motioned for them to follow him. He began to walk, leaving the shrine after giving one last bow. Itachi walked in silence as they made their way through the village, trying to decide what else he should tell them. Finally, when the group stopped at a tea shop, Itachi took a seat and sighed.

"Let's see..." Itachi began, rubbing his eyes. "The night Sakura left the village, Sasuke almost went with her. He was...tired...of what the clan put him through after what happened to him. And so, when his best friend was trying to leave the village...He almost left with her. But in the end, Sakura won the fight and left to go to Tsunade. Sasuke woke up in the hospital the next day, his best friend gone...He promised himself he'd bring her home one day, no matter what it took."

At the mention of Tsunade, Sakura's eyes widened and she stood. "Wait, Tsunade? What do you mean left for Tsunade?! Orochimaru is the bad one!" she shouted. Itachi hummed a bit and shook his head, motioning for Sakura to sit. He waited calmly and when Sakura sat back down he offered a small smile.

"In this world, Tsunade left the village years ago. When our Sakura left, she went to Tsunade and learned everything she could. Sasuke, after he left the hospital, found Orochimaru and asked him to train him. Hm...after all, Sasuke is obsessed with Haruno." Itachi eyed the Sasuke and Sakura in front of him with an almost amused smile. "Are you, Sasuke?"

Sasuke looked at Sakura quietly and studied her. Her emerald eyes...her kind smile...her pink haired...But not only that, Sakura had saved him from falling too far to darkness. Seeing her smile, after all he put her through, made him feel alive. Hearing her laugh...She was the best thing in his life. He owed her more than he could ever repay. Her and Naruto, of course. Sasuke slowly forced himself to look away from Sakura, his focus turning to Itachi.

"Sakura makes me feel human," Sasuke said finally. "I've done a lot of bad things, Itachi..." he added with a frown.

Itachi studied the man before he frowned. After a pause, he finally spoke once more.

"What have you done, Sasuke? In your world, just who are you?" Itachi questioned.

Sasuke sighed softly.

"I'm a monster," he finally admitted with a shake of his head. "I've hurt the ones I care about. I've tried, many times, to kill Naruto and Sakura. I've hurt allies and left them for dead when they were no longer any use to me. The war is partly my fault...I was with the man who started it. Obito Uchiha. I wanted to destroy Konoha, burn it to the ground, for what they made you do." Sasuke paused. "I've killed people when I didn't have to. I-"

"Obito Uchiha started the war?" Itachi questioned, interrupting Sasuke. Sasuke gave a slight nod. After a small hesitation, studying the man in front of him, Itachi asked Sasuke, "What did Konoha do to you that made you fall so far, Sasuke?"

Sasuke closed his eyes as he thought over the truth he had learned during the war. Konoha forced Itachi to slaughter the clan, telling him he could only spare Sasuke. They made Itachi a killer, and then they pretended it never happened. When Sasuke opened his eyes, his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan was in his right eye, his Rinnesharingan appearing in the left.

"When I was only eight years old, I became an orphan. You...You slaughtered the clan, Itachi, by order of the Hokage. The men...the women...even the children. Nobody was spared, except for me. And on that night, you used your Tsukuyomi to show me the slaughter of the entire clan. And you...you slaughtered mother and father, right in front of me. You told me to hate you, focus on onl survival...So that one day, I would be strong enough to kill you to avenge the clan. I became obsessed with revenge that day. It blinded me from seeing that I had people who cared about me...Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto. After we became a team, I thought maybe I could let it go. But...I couldn't. You came to the village and you told me I was still too weak. My hate wasn't strong enough. And so I ended up leaving the village. I almost killed Naruto when he tried to stop me. I would have, but in the end I simply left. I told myself I didn't want to gain power the way you told me to. Years later, when they finally found me again, I tried to kill them yet again."

Sasuke shifted in his seat, looking uncomfortable suddenly. He closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath to calm himself down. Even now, talking about it was still hard for Sasuke. When he opened his eyes he looked at Sakura in silence, a pained look in his eyes. Sakura hesitated before quietly taking his hand, squeezing it gently as she offered a smile. Sasuke looked away after a moment, his focus turning back to Itachi.

"The day finally came when I was ready to fight you," Sasuke began. "The fight was long and hard, and in the end we were both almost out of chakra. You were stumbling up to me...you seemed as if you were going to take my eyes. So I could 'become your light'." Sasuke closed his eyes and took a deep breath, shaking his head. "But then when you made it up to me, you poked my forehead and said you were sorry and that there wouldn't be a next time. Just a second later, you fell, dead. It was shortly after that that Obito told me the truth. And so my group had a new goal...We were going to go to Konoha and I was going to burn them to ash."

Sasuke cleared his throat and pulled his hand away from Sakura's, rubbing his eyes before he chuckled.

"Then during the war things seemed fine. Team Seven was back from the dead. We fought Madara. Me, Naruto and Sakura beat Kaguya Otsutsuki and freed the world. And yet, once again, I just couldn't let it go. So me and Naruto ended up fighting. I told him I had to kill him so I could cut the final ties I had to Konoha." Sasuke shook his head and looked down at his stump. "We lost our arms in that fight. But I finally was done. I couldn't keep going down the path I was on. And so now I try to be a better person...I still struggle. I still have so much anger and hurt in my heart, Itachi," Sasuke whispered as he stared at the older Uchiha.

Itachi was silent the entire time Sasuke spoke, but when he finished he offered a very small smile. He slowly raised his hand and reached out, gently tapping Sasuke on the forehead. His fingers remained as he spoke.

"I'm sorry for the hell I put you through, Sasuke. I ruined your life and put you through so much pain...You may not be of this world, but you are my brother. And I am truly sorry for the pain you went through all these years, Sasuke." Itachi hummed in thought before he smiled softly and pulled his hand away from Sasuke's face. Itachi took his necklace off and put it on Sasuke, the older Uchiha giving Sasuke a warm smile. "Think of that necklace as a promise, Sasuke. No matter what, I will always be there for you, just as I have been for our Sasuke. If you ever need help, you can count on me."

Sasuke looked down at the necklace around his neck slowly, his eyes widening. His focus remained on the necklace, the young Uchiha not sure how to react. Finally, he just looked up at Itachi and gave a small smile. "Thank you, nii-san," Sasuke whispered.

For the next half hour the group simply drank tea and relaxed. Indra remained quiet the entire time, though the Otsutsuki man seemed to be in a decent mood as he drank the tea Itachi got for them. At least, he wasn't scowling, Sakura noted. Sasuke was silent as well, though Sakura wasn't too surprised about that. As for herself, Sakura just enjoyed the tea as she thought over everything. With Fugaku and Mikoto giving them rooms, and Sasuke bonding with Itachi, Sakura wasn't sure how long they would end up staying. But to see Sasuke smile after talking to Itachi...Sakura couldn't help but smile, glad that Sasuke could allow himself to relax.

Thinking about it, Sakura really couldn't bring herself to be mad at Sasuke. The man had been without family ever since he was eight years old. He saw his clan slaughtered and killed his brother. To have his family back, in some form, how could Sasuke NOT want to stick around for awhile? After finishing her tea, Sakura set her cup down and glanced over at Indra. She wasn't quite sure how to talk to him. On hand hand, she was still pissed off at him for taking Sasuke's arm. But, Indra did give Sasuke Wood Style, and with that Sasuke had saved Sakura from Satoshi's jutsu. Sakura sighed to himself and decided she would try to be polite.

"You seem to really like tea," Sakura commented as Indra finished yet another cup. Indra set the cup down and glanced at it before he gave a single nod.

"My wife made tea all the time. I became somewhat addicted over the years," Indra replied. Sasuke set his own cup down and eyed the two, unsure if they could be civil toward each other or not. Figuring he'd just give them a chance, he turned to Itachi and finally spoke.

"I was wanting to ask. Are you happy, nii-san?"

Itachi sipped his tea and raised a brow, seeming confused by the question. He set his cup down and cleared his throat.

"Am I happy? I am, Sasuke. In fact, I am married. It's been almost two years since I got married," Itachi admitted. "Her name is Izumi Uchiha. We had been friends ever since we were kids. On the night Kurama attacked, we protected Sasuke together. It was mostly just sitting around making sure he was fine. But, we became friends on that night. And now we're married. So, yes. I am happy, Sasuke," Itachi assured his brother with a soft chuckle. Sasuke visibly relaxed once more and smiled back.

"At least you found happiness," Sasuke commented before he stood. "I think I understand this world now. Thank you, Itachi." Itachi gave a nod and finished the last of his tea before standing up as well.

"Of course, Sasuke. I enjoyed chatting with the three of you. If you three would like, we may head back home. Or, you can explore the village to get used to it. I'm sure it's mostly the same, but there might be a few changes."

Sasuke thought it over then gave a nod.

"I'm going to look around before heading back. Uh...what about you, Sakura...?" Sasuke questioned, glancing at Sakura slowly. Sakura frowned and looked away, shrugging.

"Oh...I was going to have one more cup of tea before exploring a bit," Sakura decided with a nod. Sasuke hesitated but soon gave a nod back and walked away, Itachi leaving for home, leaving Sakura alone with Indra.

When Sakura turned back to see what Indra had planned to do, she found the man using a small amount of chakra to his finger to scratch a second name into their table. Sakura glared a little.

"Why are you scratching the table up? It doesn't belong to you," Sakura pointed out. She looked again to see what exactly he carved. "Who are Akihiko and Megami?" she questioned. "One of the many people you killed or something?"

"Or something," he replied with a shrug. Sakura tried to study his expression to see what he was feeling, but the Otsutsuki man had on his usual serious look. Sakura sighed and shook her head.

"Well, you still shouldn't ruin the table."

Changing the subject, Indra asked, "What's with you and Sasuke? You've been weird ever since I woke up."

Sakura simply shrugged.

"It's just a little awkward right now," she admitted.

"Then make it not awkward," Indra replied calmly as he stood. "You can't keep avoiding each other's gaze like shy children."

Sakura glared at first but then sighed and finally nodded.

"I know that. I'll think of something and then things will be fine once more."

"You can talk in the forest. I'm sure you'll have plenty of privacy there," Indra offered before he began to walk. "I'm heading back to the house," he called back without looking.

Sakura thought about it. The Forest of Death WOULD give them plenty of privacy to talk things over. After all, nobody would go there unless it was for the Chunin exams. Sakura decided she'd ask Sasuke to meet her there within the next few days. Standing up, Sakura left the tea place as well, wandering through the village. She didn't want to head back to the house just yet, and so decided to check out the shops. The pink haired woman stopped in front of the weapon shop and stared at the items in the window.

On display, Sakura saw a katana. The sheathe was a dark red. It had a golden guard, the hilt gold as well with white wraps around it to grip. Sakura stared at the weapon for several seconds, trying to decide if Sasuke would like it. Finally, she went inside the shop and went to the front, smiling a bit when she found TenTen at the counter. Sakura let out a relieved sigh when TenTen smiled back.

"Oh, hey Sakura. What can I help you with today?" the woman questioned. Sakura motioned back at the window display and smiled again.

"Sasuke's last katana broke in a fight recently and I wanted to buy him a new one. I saw the one in the window display, and thought he would like it," Sakura explained. "How much is it?"

TenTen walked away from the counter and went to the window. She grabbed the weapon and brought it back up, setting it down in front of Sakura.

"It's currently only 10,000 ryo," TenTen explained and smiled. "Do you want it, or...?"

Without hesitation, Sakura gave a nod and pulled a scroll out, the scroll holding money for when traveling. She summoned the money needed and handed it over before lifting the weapon.

"Thank you, TenTen," Sakura said as she turned to leave.

"Tell Sasuke-san I said hi," TenTen replied with a nod.

Sakura nodded and left, humming happily to herself as she headed back to their current home. She stepped inside and ran right into Youta as he was leaving. Youta grunted and rubbed his face, though the boy instantly cheered up when he saw it was Sakura.

"Oh! Hey, Sakura-san! Sorry, I was running out to find Shisui-sensei. I wanted to show him I can hit targets better now!" the boy explained happily. Sakura kneeled to be level with him and offered a smile.

"It was my fault. I wasn't really paying attention. Have you seen Sasuke, by any chance?"

Youta paused in thought for several seconds before he grinned again and gave a nod.

"Yeah! Nii-san just went to outside. He and Itachi-san went down by the lake," Youta explained. "I think they were going to spar," Youta added.

Sakura gave a nod and stood, smiling.

"Thanks for the help, Youta. Good luck with training, okay?"

"I'll do my best, Sakura-san!" Youta promised and ran outside.

Sakura shook her head with an amused smile.

"Sweet kid," Sakura commented to herself before heading back outside. She made her way down to the lake, ignoring the stares some of the Uchihas gave her. When she arrived, she found Sasuke ducking low to avoid Itachi's roundhouse kick. Sasuke went to tackle Itachi, but the two paused when they noticed Sakura.

Itachi offered Sakura a smile and wiped sweat from his face.

"I'll give you two some privacy," Itachi offered. "We'll spar later, Sasuke," Itachi promised before he walked off. When Itachi was out of sight, Sasuke turned his focus to Sakura, offering a small smile.

"Sasuke, I...well, I have something I wanted to give you," Sakura explained. Sasuke glanced at the sword and then back at Sakura. Sakura held the blade out and smiled. "Your last one broke when we fought that lava monster. I knew you needed a new one, so..." she began.

Sasuke gently took the weapon from her and studied it. He put it on, the hilt hanging low next to his hip for quick access. He drew the sword and extended his hand, studying the blade quietly. It felt good to hold. Sheathing the blade, Sasuke's focus returned to the woman in front of him. He offered her a real smile and reached out, tapping her forehead.

"It's great, Sakura. Thank you," he finally said. Before Sakura could reply, Sasuke pulled her into a hug, wrapping his arm around her. "I'm...sorry for how I've been acting. I was just embarrassed," Sasuke admitted. "I'm not avoiding you because I'm mad, though, I promise," he added quickly.

Sakura hugged back and nodded a little bit, smiling widely. She was glad Sasuke enjoyed her gift. Looking up at him, Sakura said, "It's fine, Sasuke. When we get the chance, we can talk about it in the Forest of Death, okay?"

Sasuke gave a nod.

"Okay," was all he replied.

"For now...let's just go back inside. I...suppose it'd be fine for us to stay for a bit," Sakura decided. "But we will have to leave eventually, Sasuke," she added. Sasuke gave a small nod and motioned toward the house. Sakura began walking, Sasuke following next to her with his hand on the hilt of his new katana.

"Alright, Sakura. Let's just enjoy it while it lasts."


	8. Forest of Death

"Itachi, I want to fight you," Sasuke decided with a small nod. Sasuke was sitting outside of Itachi's house, the two enjoying tea as they watched the clear blue sky, simply enjoying each other's company. At his words, Itachi sipped at his tea, thinking over Sasuke's request. If this Sasuke was anything like the Sasuke he knew, Itachi knew the fight would be rough. Rough, but fun. Itachi slowly set his tea down and looked over at Sasuke, offering a small smile and a single nod.

"Very well, Sasuke. It'd be good for me to get in some training. Besides, I'm curious about what you can do," Itachi decided. "I wonder if you fight like the Sasuke of this world?"

"I want a real fight...Don't hold back, Itachi."

Itachi studied Sasuke with a small frown. He knew Sasuke could handle himself in a fight. After all, Sasuke had the Rinnesharingan. Still, Itachi wasn't wasn't sure a full on, no-holding-back fight was a good idea. Someone could end up getting hurt. Going all out, the village could be destroyed if the fight got out of hand. Itachi knew his Susanoo could handle whatever Sasuke threw at it. After all, with the Totsuka Blade and Yata Mirror, Itachi's Susanoo couldn't lose.

Itachi finally let out a soft sigh and gave a small nod.

"Very well, Sasuke. Let's fight."

Sasuke's reaction was instant.

Tackling Itachi from his chair, Sasuke punched his brother's face hard. He pulled his arm back for another punch when Itachi slammed his fist into Sasuke's gut, causing the younger Uchiha to lose his breath. With the small delay in Sasuke's movement, Itachi kicked his brother off and quickly got back on his feet, his Sharingan spinning into his eyes. Itachi quickly did handsigns and launched a large dragon head made of fire, the jutsu flying at Sasuke at high speeds. Sasuke shut his right eye and held out his hand as he focused his Rinnesharingan. The moment the flames made contact with his hand, the dragon head began to be absorbed until all that was left was warm air surrounding them. With the chakra drained from Itachi's attack, Sasuke did his own handsigns with the help of a Susanoo arm before he slammed his hand onto the ground. The second his hand hit the grass, a stream of lightning rushed from Sasuke's hand toward Itachi, the electricity crackling and heating the air as it traveled, burning the ground beneath it. When it neared him, Itachi quickly rolled to the side and kicked Sasuke in the chest, knocking him off balance and canceling the jutsu.

Sasuke let out a soft grunt as he slammed into the side of Itachi's house, a cracking sound coming from his shoulder. He pushed himself upright and weaved many handsigns before launching a massive fireball at Itachi. The older Uchiha did the same handsigns and launched his own massive ball of fire. The two orbs of flame connected in the space between the two Uchihas, an intense heat coming from the jutsu. Sasuke soon ended his jutsu and hopped into the air, lightning crackling around his hand as he dived at Itachi. Itachi hopped back, barely dodging the attack. Before he could land, a stream of lightning burst from the ground below him. Itachi quickly made a clone, using it to throw himself out of the way. Itachi landed on the roof of his house and wiped blood from his mouth, panting softly. Sasuke and Itachi had been fighting for a while, and Itachi could tell Sasuke was becoming angry.

Itachi watched as Sasuke landed in front of his house, the younger Uchiha looking up with an annoyed look on his face. Sasuke closed his eyes and was motionless for several seconds. When he opened his eyes, Sasuke's Mangekyou and Rinnesharingan activated. Sasuke hopped up to Itachi and when Sasuke landed he rushed the older Uchiha, thrusting his katana at his stomach. Itachi quickly pulled out a kunai and pushed Sasuke's blade up, holding it in place as he stared at his brother. The two locked weapons, holding each other in place as they locked eyes.

"You really do have a lot of anger still," Itachi commented.

Sasuke spun behind him and pierced him through the chest, panting softly. The two stood in silence for several seconds before Itachi burst into several crow and flew several feet from Sasuke where he reformed. Itachi's Sharingan spun slowly as it transformed into his Mangekyou. Sasuke stared, a little surprised. Itachi's Mangekyou was different than he expected. The middle was open and the rest of the Mangekyou looked like a small shuriken, though only three points. Between each point was a black dot, the Mangekyou spinning slowly as Itachi stared at Sasuke.

"And it seems you really don't know how to hold back," Itachi added.

Itachi ran by Sasuke, the two locking eyes once more for a moment before Itachi was rushing away from Sasuke. He hopped house to house, Sasuke quickly following. Itachi lead them away from the homes and soon the two were down by the lake. Itachi landed on the water and Sasuke landed on the wooden dock, sheathing his katana.

Focusing chakra to his feet, Sasuke hopped off the dock and began to run at his brother, kicking up water as he made his way toward the older man. He dived at him, attempting to tackle, but Itachi side stepped. Sasuke smirked and as he hit the water, Itachi was suddenly knocked over as well, Sasuke's Rinnesharingan glowing.

Itachi quickly made it to his feet and scanned the area, but when he wasn't able to see anything he looked back at Sasuke and smiled.

"Using your Rinnesharingan clone mid-attack? Good idea," Itachi complimented. Sasuke stood and rushed Itachi with his katana, swinging it at the man. Itachi, once again, blocked the blade, though this time he caught it with a Susanoo hand of his eye. Itachi held the blade it place for a moment before he pulled it out of Sasuke's grasp, throwing it out of the way. The blade landed on the dock, the sharp metal sticking into the wood. "Don't worry, Sasuke. I won't destroy your new sword."

Sasuke and Itachi began fighting with Taijutsu now, trading kicks and punches. Sasuke slammed his fist into Itachi's eye as Itachi roughly kneed Sasuke in the stomach, the two grunting as they hopped back from each other. Itachi's Mangekyou spun rapidly and the Uchiha smirked as he locked eyes with his brother.

At first, it seemed as Itachi hadn't done anything. But, slowly, the clouds above became black and the blue sky became blood red. Crows flew high above, a few of the birds landing around Itachi. The water beneath their feet shined, looking like liquified silver. Itachi slowly looked up at Sasuke and smiled a little, shaking his head.

"You can't beat me, brother," he pointed out. He wasn't bragging, Sasuke noted. The man remained as calm as ever, seemingly in a good mood despite the rough battle. "I've spent my life protecting my Sasuke. You fight just like him, little brother," Itachi explained softly. The crows around Itachi's feet cawed loudly and several in the sky dived down at Sasuke, aiming to spear him with their beaks. Before they could hit Sasuke he formed the ribcage of his Susanoo around himself, using an arm to swat the birds out of the air. Itachi chuckled and shook his head.

"This is my world, Sasuke. You can fight as much as you want, but you won't win."

Sasuke locked eyes with the older Uchiha.

Slowly, it looked as if the sky began cracking, the clouds blurring and the silver water becoming clear in several spots. With a shout, Sasuke widened his Rinnesharingan eye and broke free from the Tsukuyomi.

"You might know how I fight, but in my world, I've escaped your Tsukuyomi before," Sasuke commented with a soft smirk.

Itachi smiled a little and chuckled. "I'm impressed. You're very gifted, Sasuke. Only a few people have managed to escape my eyes."

Without another word Sasuke shot forward and threw a kunai of his own. Itachi leaned back, the kunai soaring just above him. It flickered and a moment later Sasuke took its place, holding his hands together with his fingers laced. He slammed his hands down, Itachi letting out a grunt as his chest was hit. From the force of the hit Itachi broke through the surface of the water, slowly starting to sink. He saw Sasuke stand on the surface, the young man smirking to himself. Itachi smiled and closed his eyes before bursting into smoke. It had been a clone. The real Itachi dropped from the sky, kicking Sasuke across the face, sending the Uchiha flying back. Sasuke slammed into the dock with a grunt of pain, his back hitting the hard wood with a thud. He fell into the water, slowly going under.

When he began climbing back out, he spit water and once standing he turned his focus back to Itachi.

"Quick thinking with the clone," Sasuke called out to Itachi. Itachi gave a small nod.

"Like I said, little brother. I know how to fight you."

The two became silent then, the only sound being the waves of the lake and the wind, a nice breeze blowing. Itachi closed his eyes and just enjoyed the cool air. It felt great after all their fighting.

"We're not done yet, Itachi," Sasuke pointed out.

The moment of peaceful silence gone, Itachi opened his eyes and gave a nod.

"You should learn to enjoy things, Sasuke," Itachi replied.

With that, the fight resumed.

Sasuke Susanoo slowly formed, though not in its complete form. It had no legs, like how Itachi's had been during their final fight, and was purple. Itachi formed his own Susanoo, the phantom the color of fire. Without a word Sasuke had his Susanoo shoot an arrow at Itachi, though Itachi held up the Yata mirror, blocking with ease. Sasuke rushed Itachi, having his Susanoo swing its sword. Itachi quickly raised his own sword and barely managed to block. While his sword was busy blocking, Sasuke did several handsigns with the help of a mini Susanoo arm. He slammed his hand onto the water and shouted, "Water Style: Heavenly Dragon!"

Behind Sasuke, a single massive water dragon rose from the lake. Unlike a regular Water Dragon jutsu, however, Sasuke had mixed in some Lightning Style, electricity coursing through the body of the dragon, making it glow and crackle. With a wave of his hand, the dragon shot forward and flew at Itachi.

As fast as he could, Itachi made a single clone before the two began doing handsigns. The real Itachi shot a massive ball of fire at the dragon, turning the water to part to steam. Before Itachi's clone could do its jutsu, Sasuke shouted, "Heavenly Pull!"

The clone was dragged into the lightning, bursting into smoke on contact. The real Itachi had his Susanoo quickly swing upward. As the lightning dragon hit, the blade cut it in two, the two parts crashing into the water behind Itachi as he and Sasuke jumped into the air. The water lit up, the powerful lightning surrounded them. The two had to stand on their Susanoo to avoid being shocked. When the water finally returned to normal, Sasuke hopped down, making his Susanoo fade. Itachi hopped down as well, his own Susanoo leaving as well.

"Let's end this," Sasuke decided as he slammed his palm onto the water. As a single wooden tendril grew from the water and shot at Itachi, Itachi's Mangekyou spun and the black flames of Amaterasu shot at the Wood Style attack.

As the two attacks flew at each other, Indra suddenly appeared in the middle. His spiral Mangekyou spun into his eyes and as the black flames and wood grew close, his left eye began bleeding. He focused on Amaterasu first. Before it could hit him, as he began doing handsigns, the fire suddenly faded away. As the black flames of Amaterasu faded into nothing more than steam rising from the water, Indra used his own Wood Style jutsu. A single, massive vine rose from the water and wrapped around Sasuke's vine, stopping it an inch from Indra. Many small tendrils broke free from the main body of Indra's vine and quickly slithered down, wrapping around Sasuke's arm tightly when it reached the Uchiha. It forced him to raise his palm from the water, weakening Sasuke's jutsu. Slowly, the wood began rotting, breaking and falling into the water below.

"I think this fight is over," was all the Otsutsuki man said.

As Indra stood straight, his own Wood Style jutsu slowly disappearing, Sasuke could see his left eye was bleeding badly. Indra was breathing heavily as well and seemed as if he was struggling to stay on his feet, the man wearing an angry expression.

"What did you do?" Sasuke questioned after a long pause.

Holding his hand over his eye, Indra turned his focus to Sasuke, his voice weak.

"Something I haven't had to do in years," the Otsutsuki man replied. "My Mangekyou..." Indra trailed off and shook his head. "The two of you were going far for a sparring match," he pointed out as he hopped off the water, landing on the dock before falling to his knees with a soft thud as a wave of dizziness washed over him.

Itachi hopped over and helped the man to his feet, Sasuke moving to them to help as well.

"Are you alright, Indra-san?" Itachi questioned.

"I'm still not at full health," Indra replied. "I'm going back," he added, motioning with his head toward Mikoto and Fugaku's home. Itachi gave a small nod and Indra began walking, though he paused to look back at Sasuke. "Sasuke. Sakura was looking for you. Forest of Death," he told his heir. He tried taking another step but stopped, closing his eyes tightly as a stabbing pain shot through his eyes.

Noticing how much Indra was struggling, Itachi moved to the man and put his arm over his shoulder.

"Indra-san, let me help you. You aren't well, as you said. You shouldn't have wasted so much chakra doing...what you did." The Uchiha glanced at the father of his clan, a worried yet curious look in his eyes. "Let me help you home. You need rest, and we'll send for a medic to stop by." Glancing at Sasuke, Itachi gave a nod. "Sasuke, you can go. Indra will be fine." With that, Itachi and Indra began walking, Indra wiping the blood from his eye. Sasuke hesitated, but finally ended up heading to the forest. He made a mental note to ask Sakura to check on Indra when they returned home.

When Sasuke finally approached the Forest of Death, he found himself frozen as he looked into the dark, dense forest. The massive trees blocked out a majority of the sun, slivers of the rays peaking through the leaves. It had been years since he was in the forest, yet he remembered every second of his time there as if it happened only seconds before. How could he forget? His life had changed once because of the forest. He had no clue it was about to change again.

As Sasuke forced himself to journey into the forest, he turned his Sharingan on to make it easier to see where he was going. It was difficult traveling through the forest, but with the help of his special eyes he managed, keeping his hand on the hilt of his katana in case any of the animals tried attacking him. He wasn't sure where he was going, Indra giving him no clear directions, but his confusion faded as he saw the Haruno crest carved into a tree with an arrow pointing forward. He studied the sign and smiled lightly.

"Thanks for the clue, Sakura," he whispered as he continued on his way.

Sasuke walked for awhile in silence. He found a small smile coming to his face as he searched for the next clue. It was...peaceful. The quiet of the forest, with only the sounds of animals breaking the quiet. Perhaps Itachi was right, Sasuke thought.

Sasuke soon found himself by a river. He remembered it. It was the river Naruto, Sakura and himself had stopped to eat at during the Chunin exams. They had fish, Sasuke recalled. Activating his Sharingan, Sasuke studied the area in search of Sakura's next clue. The Uchiha soon found a small message scribbled in the dirt next to the river.

'Return to where an embrace can stop darkness.'

Sasuke frowned a little as he stared at the words. He knew what they meant, though thinking back on the event made him feel weird.

It was when he woke to see Sakura hurt, his Curse Mark spreading as he attacked the people who hurt her. He would have killed them, too, if it wasn't for Sakura. Her hug...A single hug stopped him. Not a jutsu. A hug. Sakura had stopped him from murdering the Sound ninjas that day.

Shaking the thoughts away, an odd feeling in his chest, Sasuke continued walking to the spot Sakura told him to go. It didn't take long, though the few minutes it took for him to arrive gave Sasuke more than enough time to get lost in thoughts.

When he arrived, Sasuke once again studied the area for any clues. It didn't take long to find, the Uchiha finding another Haruno crest with an arrow.

As he journeyed through the woods, Sasuke found only a few more messages. He most found arrows.

Even with the clues it took the Uchiha 40 minutes to finally get to Sakura, the woman deep in the forest. He wondered briefly why she went so far in the forest, but knew he'd find out shortly.

"Hello, Sakura," Sasuke greeted as he stepped up next to her. "Your clues helped. Thanks."

Sakura turned to face the Uchiha and offered a small smile before she looked around.

"You remember this place, right?" Sakura questioned.

Sasuke glanced around as well.

"A lot of things happened in this forest," Sasuke agreed finally. "I lost control at one point. The Curse Mark..."

 **Sasuke slowly stood, the Curse Mark spread over the left side of his face, his left arm covered as well. Purple chakra flowed from his body, his Sharingan activated in his eyes as he stared down at his hand. "Sakura..." he finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. He slowly looked over at the pink haired girl, a look of pure rage in his eyes. "Who hurt you?" he questioned.**

 **"S...Sasuke-kun?"**

 **"Who did this to you?"**

 **Before Sakura could answer the Uchiha, one of the Sound ninjas, Zaku Abumi, spoke up.**

 **"We did it!" Zaku declared proudly with a cocky smirk.**

 **Sasuke slowly turned his focus to the Sound ninja, glaring at the man. His focus returned to Sakura as she spoke once more.**

 **"Sasuke-kun...your body..."**

 **Sasuke glanced down at his hand and slowly smirked, a twisted gleam in his eyes.**

 **"I feel fine...In fact...I feel amazing..." Sasuke admitted and chuckled softly. "I finally understand, Sakura..." The Uchiha looked at the girl. "I'm on a path where I must gain power...no matter what..." The Uchiha looked back at Zaku, the curse mark spreading across his face other arm as he smirked. "Now...It was you, right?"**

 **The leader of the Sound group, Dosu Kinuta, stared at Sasuke, his eyes growing wide. "This...This is...!" Dosu began. "His chakra is too strong!"**

 **"No need to be afraid of this half dead freak, Dosu!" Zaku shouted, the cocky ninja extending his arms, palms facing Sasuke.**

 **"Zaku, don't!" Dosu ordered, but he didn't listen.**

 **"Ultimate Zankuuha!" A powerful stream of air shot from Zaku's hands, the powerful attack leaving the earth scarred. When the dust cleared, Sasuke was nowhere in sight. Zaku laughed. "I've blown him away!" he shouted, smirking.**

 **After letting go of Naruto and Sakura, having moved them during the attack, Sasuke smirked. "Blew who away? I'm right here." With that, Sasuke hit the man with a backhand, sending him flying. Not waiting, Sasuke quickly did handsigns and breathed in deep. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" he shouted before launching several small balls of fire at Zaku.**

 **Zaku laughed and held his arms out once more. "I'll just blast them away!" he pointed out and let loose another blast of air. But when the fire went out, Zaku's eyes widened as several shuriken became visible. They cut him as they flew by, Zaku letting out a pained sound as he raised his arms to shield his face. While Zaku was distracted, Sasuke moved quickly and got behind him, smirking as he knocked him to his knees. Sasuke grabbed his arms tight and placed his foot on Zaku's back.**

 **Sasuke had a twisted look in his eyes as he chuckled. "You seem very proud of these arms..." Without another word, Sasuke pulled hard until a snapping sound could be heard. He let go, letting Zaku drop to the ground before slowly turning his focus to Dosu. "Looks like it's just you now...I hope you give me more fun." Sasuke began to walk toward Dosu, advancing very slowly. But before he could reach him, Sasuke heard Sakura's voice.**

 **"Stop!"**

 **Running toward Sasuke, Sakura threw herself at the Uchiha, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace. Instantly Sasuke froze, his eyes widening. He slowly looked back at the girl, looking her in the eye. Their gaze locked and the two simply stared for several seconds. Sasuke felt...Odd. The moment he felt Sakura's arms around him, it was as if all his rage burned away. Why did her embrace stop him...? He saw tears in her eyes and frowned slightly more before looking to Dosu. He wanted to kill him for what they did to Sakura. And yet...The Curse Mark slowly began going away, leaving his arms, legs, chest and face until it returned to just his shoulder.**

Sasuke stared at Sakura as his thoughts left the memory. Even back then, though he had refused to believe it, Sakura was able to calm his rage. He pushed her away over and over, year after year. And yet here she was, standing in front of him with a small, warm smile on her face. His girlfriend. Sasuke frowned a little as he stared, slowly opening his mouth to speak.

"Sakura...I have to tell you something," Sasuke finally forced out. "Back in Konoha. I lied to you," Sasuke finally admitted. It had been on his mind for awhile, what he did to Katsu. And lying to Sakura...He knew keeping a secret like that wasn't going to do him any good.

Sakura was silent for a time, simply staring at him. Eventually, she asked what Sasuke was dreading.

"What did you lie about?"

Sasuke took a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

"I killed Katsu, Sakura."

Their was a long silence between them, the only sound coming from the forest around them.

"And...What made you lie?" Sakura questioned quietly.

Sasuke thought about her question and frowned.

"I didn't want to disappoint you," he finally admitted, to Sakura as much as to himself.

"Sasuke..." Sakura began but paused, trying to think of what to say. "You...I promise Sasuke, you really are a better person. You aren't the same man as back then," Sakura pointed out slowly. "What made you confess, though?" Sakura added softly.

"Sakura...I don't want to lie to you. I love you and I don't want to lose you. I can't lose you," Sasuke replied, voice barely above a whisper.

The silence returned then, a smile coming back to Sakura's face as Sasuke said he loved her. He had said it once before...When they were drunk. To hear him say it sober...It make Sakura happier than she had been in a long time.

"I don't want to lose you either, Sasuke. I love you too much. We're connected, you know," Sakura replied and suddenly hugged him tightly, pressing her face against his chest. Sasuke hugged back, wrapping his arm around Sakura's body, holding the woman close to him.

"Sakura..." Sasuke eventually said as he pulled back, a serious look on his face. "I want to prove my love," he told her. "While I was away, I learned many things. Things about life, how the world worked...But also something about my clan." Sasuke slowly pulled out a small, silver scroll, a golden string tied around it. "I wasn't sure if I should tell you, but..." Sasuke paused.

"What is it, Sasuke?" Sakura questioned. "You can tell me, Sasuke."

With a soft nod, Sasuke smiled at her.

"I found a scroll. In the Uchiha clan, when two people want to show their lasting love, their is a seal they use."

"A seal...? What does it do?" Sakura asked, looking very curious. She also felt an extreme happiness in her chest at the fact that Sasuke wanted to share something with her that was important to his clan.

"With the seal, they are truly connected by their feelings," Sasuke finally said. "If I were to use the seal on you, you'd be able to feel what I feel, Sakura. If I put the matching seal on myself, then I'd feel your emotions as well. Your happiness...your sorrow...we'd always be able to understand each other, and we'd always be there for each other," Sasuke explained softly. Sakura stared at the scroll for only a moment before she made her decision.

"Sasuke, I've loved you my entire life. I want us to be connected for the rest of our lives," Sakura told him. For a moment, Sasuke could only smile, but soon he pulled the woman into another tight embrace, holding her as close as he could. Her warmth only made his smile grow.

"I love you, Sakura Haruno," he whispered.

"I love you, Sasuke Uchiha. I always have, and I always will. No matter what happens, I will love you until the day I die. Let's do this, Sasuke."

Sasuke held her a moment longer before he pulled away from the hug and gave her a nod.

"The seal is placed over the heart," Sasuke explained as he began removing his shirt. All awkwardness between them was gone by then and so Sakura removed her shirt as well, shivering softly as she stood in front of her lover. Sakura's face heated up as she found Sasuke staring at her.

"You're beautiful, Sakura," Sasuke whispered before he stepped forward. "The seal is drawn with our chakra, to connect us," he explained. Raising his hand, his index finger began to glow as he focused his chakra. Very gently Sasuke began to apply the seal, tracing his finger across her skin. As Sasuke drew the seal, Sakura found that her skin tingled pleasantly where he touched. When Sasuke finally pulled his hand away, Sakura looked down to check the seal. It glowed purple, the color of Sasuke's chakra. The glow lasted several seconds before the seal settled in. When Sakura looked up, she found Sasuke staring at her in silence.

"Do you feel any different?" Sasuke questioned. There was a slight pause, Sakura's expression softening as she stared at the Uchiha.

"It's...Intense, but..." Sakura begin. "Oh, Sasuke, I love you." Sakura hugged Sasuke tightly, a goofy grin on her face. Sasuke wrapped his arm around her for a moment before stepping back, glancing down at his own chest.

"Now it's your turn to mark me, Sakura," Sasuke pointed out softly. Sakura gave an eager nod and stepped up. She traced the scar over his heart, a wound the man had received when Madara stabbed him during the war. Focusing her chakra to her finger, Sakura began to put the same seal on Sasuke, working a little slower. She wanted to get the seal perfect, though she had to admit to herself that she found herself enjoying the feel of his chest. When the seal was finished and Sakura couldn't delay any longer, she pulled her hand away and looked up at him.

"Well...? Did I get the seal right?" she asked.

The two stared in silence for a moment before Sasuke suddenly kissed her lips gently, wrapping his arm around her. Sakura kissed back gently and wrapped her arms around him. When Sasuke pulled back, they simply gave a nod before they began to strip. Sakura removed her bra as Sasuke worked on his pants, the Uchiha seeming nervous.

"Sasuke, relax," Sakura said softly as she let her bra drop. Sasuke looked up and froze, feeling a small blush coming to his face as he stared at Sakura's body. "I know we went...a bit crazy...when we were drunk. But we can go slow," Sakura pointed out. Sasuke gave a small nod and removed his boxers. He folded his clothes before setting them to the side in a neat pile, Sakura setting her clothes right by his. The two took a moment to check each other out, Sasuke's Sharingan burning the image of Sakura's nude form to his memory. He stepped forward and leaned once more to kiss the shorter woman, smiling softly as she kissed back. Pulling away from the kiss, Sakura slowly looked around the forest before glancing at Sasuke.

"Do you think we could maybe lay your poncho down? I don't think it'd feel good to have twigs and leaves rubbing against us," Sakura pointed out. Sasuke chuckled softly before he gave a nod, moving over to his clothes. He hummed softly as he pulled out a small scroll, the scroll he used for storing the few things of clothes that he owned. He summoned the light brown poncho from the scroll and handed it to Sakura, the woman spreading it out on the grass before she gave Sasuke a thumbs up. Once again, Sasuke had to pause, gently tracing the seal Sakura placed on him.

"It really is intense...This'll take some time to get used to," Sasuke commented before he moved with Sakura, the woman pulling him into a soft kiss as she moved onto her back, the poncho making her much more comfortable. Sasuke stared down at the woman, his hand placed by her side. He leaned close, their noses almost touching. "I love you, Sakura," Sasuke whispered.

Placing a hand on the seal over her heart, Sakura smiled.

"I know you do, Sasuke. I love you too."

With another soft kiss, Sasuke finally eased into Sakura, a gasp escaping his lips as pleasure shot through his body. Sakura let as a cry of pleasure and wrapped her arms around Sasuke as the Uchiha penetrated her, the two blushing softly as Sasuke slowly began to move, Sasuke giving slow thrusts. Though the two enjoyed the drunken frenzy of their first time, they both mentally decided their current coupling was far better. As Sakura's walls began to spasm around his length, Sasuke had to stop, the pleasure causing him to breathe in sharply. He remained motionless for several seconds before he resume his thrusting. Due to lack of experience, the two moved a little clumsily. Despite that, the two clearly enjoyed themselves, Sasuke's shaft rock hard and Sakura was dripping wet.

Though still feeling a little shy, Sasuke grew curious about Sakura's body. He ran his hand along her side as they kissed slowly, gripping her hip tightly before running his hand over her stomach. He paused, pulling back from the kiss with a curious look in his eyes. He glanced down to where their bodies met and moved his hand a little lower, rubbing his thumb against her clit. Up until recently, Sasuke hadn't bothered with sexual thoughts. He had been a virgin, and now had very limited experience. But as Sakura's wall tightened around his length, the pink haired woman squirming and whimpering from pleasure, Sasuke knew it'd be wise to continue his teasing. As he teased her clit and moved his hips, Sasuke glanced at the seal over her heart. He leaned his head and after a pause he took Sakura's nipple into his mouth, licking it slowly.

With all the pleasure they felt, Sasuke and Sakura didn't last long. Sakura tightened around Sasuke as she reached her orgasm and Sasuke sank deep, moaning as he filled Sakura with his seed. Sasuke held her tightly, Sakura gripping him just as tightly as the two slowly calmed down from their orgasms, both trying to steady their breathing.

The two tensed up when they heard leaves rustling behind them.

"Sasuke, Sakura, you guys need to-" Itachi began but froze when he saw the position they were in. Seeing his brother balls deep was not how Itachi had wanted his day to end. Itachi quickly turned away as the two scrambled to dress, Sakura feeling embarrassed as hell. When the two were finally dressed, Sasuke cleared his throat.

"Uh...What did you need, Itachi?" Sakura asked, an embarrassed grin on her face.

Itachi waited another moment to be safe before he slowly faced the two.

"Sasuke and Sakura have returned. They want to meet you."


	9. Calm Before The Storm

Being caught had been embarrassing for Sasuke and Sakura, but the two were very curious to meet their counterparts. As Sasuke, Sakura and Itachi walked through the forest, Itachi leading the way, Sasuke wondered what the Sasuke and Sakura of this world was like. According to Itachi, Sakura was Kurama's Jinchuuriki. She had left the village, only coming back for good after Sasuke and her battled one final time. Running his hand through his hair, trying to make it less wild after his...activities with Sakura, Sasuke looked toward Itachi.

"Itachi, what are we supposed to call them?" Sasuke questioned suddenly. When Itachi looked back with a raised brow, Sasuke explained. "There will be two Sakuras and two Sasukes. Wouldn't it become confusing to simply say 'Sasuke' or 'Sakura' when trying to get our attention?"

Itachi thought it over for a moment before nodding once.

"Easy. This world's Sasuke can go by 'Uchiha' while you are here. And this world's Sakura can go by 'Haruno'," Itachi decided. "That is, if they go along with it. If not, we'll use their ANBU names until you and Sakura leave."

"What are their ANBU names?" Sakura asked.

"Sasuke's ANBU name was Tsuki, Sakura's was Taiyo," Itachi explained. "Konoha's Moon and Sun," he added with a chuckle.

At Itachi's words, Sasuke glanced down at his missing arm and thought about the moon seal he was given by the Sage Of Six Paths. Looking up toward Sakura, Sasuke offered a small smile before returning his focus to Itachi.

"I had a seal on my palm, a crescent moon. Naruto had a sun. In this world, is it the same, only with Sakura having the sun marking?"

Itachi looked back at his brother and gave a small nod.

"Or, it was like that until they blew their arms off. Sakura's punch, with all that chakra behind it, destroyed Sasuke's arm. Sasuke's Chidori destroyed Sakura's arm. We found them in time to save them, of course."

Looking forward again, Itachi shook his head and chuckled softly.

"Their fight was brutal. Even I was shocked at how far Sakura was willing to go in that battle...She almost killed Sasuke, in fact," Itachi explained to the couple following him.

When they finally exited the forest, Itachi turned to face the two.

"We'll go to my house to get them."

With that, Itachi motioned once more for them to follow. With a nod, Sasuke and Sakura followed behind him, Sakura humming happily to herself. She froze after a moment, however, when she realized something.

"Um...Itachi," Sakura said quietly.

Raising a brow, Sasuke and Itachi both looked at the pink haired woman.

"What's wrong, Sakura?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi was silent for a moment before he blinked and shook his head, trying to hide his amused smile.

"You guys need to shower and, in Sakura's case I'm sure, get fresh clothes," Itachi explained to Sasuke. Sasuke stared blankly for a moment before slowly looking over at Sakura, seeming confused for several seconds.

And then it clicked.

"Oh. Oh. Right, we need to shower," Sasuke agreed. "After our fun..." he added slowly, trailing off as he watched for Sakura's reaction. The woman's cheeks heated up and she narrowed her eyes at her boyfriend.

"Don't say a word, Sasuke," she warned. "It's not like I had time to wash up before Itachi rushed us to get dressed!" she defended before sighing and looking at Itachi. "Could we use your bathroom when we get there, or do we need to go back to Sasuke's?"

Itachi shrugged, not seeming to care either way.

"Whichever works best for you," he offered. "The showers at my house are much better, in my opinion. They stay hot for longer," he explained.

With that in mind, Sakura nodded before she began walking again, motioning for Itachi to lead the way. As they traveled through the village, Sasuke quietly took Sakura's hand. Surprised, Sakura looked over only to find the Uchiha giving her a small smile.

"I love you," he murmured before shrugging and looking ahead. Despite his coolness, the Uchiha didn't let go of her hand. Sakura smiled to herself and let out a happy sigh. Sure, it was odd for Sasuke to show affection so easily. But, she figured after their time in the Forest of Death things would be easier. Sakura couldn't help but smile as she thought of the forest. She knew it would be a special place for the two of them for the rest of their lives, despite previous bad memories of the place.

When the group arrived at Itachi's house, Itachi opened the door and motioned them inside, closing the door once all three of them entered. Glancing at Sakura, Itachi said, "The bathroom is down the hall, first door on the right. We have shampoo and soap, of course, though likely not what you usually use. But, the water is warm and you can get clean."

Sakura thanked him before walking off, leaving the two Uchiha men alone. Sasuke watched until Sakura was out of sight before he looked back to Itachi.

"The other shower is connected to our room," Itachi said and lead Sasuke through the house. The house was simple yet comfortable, Sasuke noted as he followed. He noticed a few photos as they moved through the home. Itachi with a young Sasuke, Sasuke wearing his Konoha headband. Another photo that caught Sasuke's attention was one of Itachi and who Sasuke guessed was his wife. They wore traditional robes. Izumi had a large grin on her face, Itachi having his own slightly calmer yet still happy expression. It looked as if they had just married. Sasuke stopped walking and studied the photo, a small smile coming to his face. Itachi hadn't been lying when he said he was happy. Sasuke slowly pulled his focus away from the photo and continued to follow his brother, soon getting to the second bathroom. A few seconds after Sasuke stepped in, Itachi followed and handed over a towel.

"Here. I'll return with fresh clothes by the time you finish," Itachi promised though Sasuke shook his head.

"I have spare clothes sealed away."

Itachi shrugged before turning and walking away, leaving Sasuke alone.

When Sasuke finally came out of the bathroom and found his way to the kitchen, he wore dark gray pants, a black shirt with a high collar and a white flak jacket over the shirt. His sword was in place as usual. Looking around quietly, he found the others already waiting at the table. After a small pause, Sasuke took a seat by his Sakura, studying the others to see how they acted. He watched as Sasuke, or 'Tsuki' as Itachi told them to call him, set a cup of tea in front of Sakura (or Taiyo). He rubbed the back of her hand lovingly with his thumb and gave her a warm smile before pulling away to focus on his own tea. Unlike Sasuke's normal outfit, 'Tsuki' Uchiha wore an old style white robe with black trimming, something a clan leader might wear. Around his forehead, instead of a Konoha headband, he wore a dark purple cloth with the Uchiha crest on it. His hair was styled to cover one eye, his Rinnesharingan. His visible eye didn't seem cold, either, instead he appeared to be calm. With his Sharingan, Sasuke noticed he was wearing a lotus necklace, one of the petals pink. Next to him sat 'Taiyo' Sakura. Her eyes were harder than Sasuke expected. She wore no headband either. Her clothes were what Sasuke expected, for the most part. She wore her red shirt and for pants she wore simple black blanks, something most Jonin wore. When she caught Sasuke studying her, she smirked a little before sipping her tea.

"Once again, Itachi, you make great tea," Haruno admitted, breaking the silence. Itachi simply smiled and relaxed in his chair, sipping his tea as he watched them.

With the silence broke, the conversation finally began.

"Hello, Sasuke," Uchiha greeted Sasuke. "I'm sure Itachi told you, but you can call me Tsuki or simply Uchiha," the heir explained in a polite tone, giving a gentle smile. Sasuke gave a nod and murmured a thanks as Itachi gave him some tea.

"He did explain that," Sasuke agreed. "And she's going by 'Haruno' or 'Taiyo' while we're here?" he asked, eyeing the Jinchuuriki.

"'She' is sitting right here and can answer for herself," Haruno pointed out with an amused smirk. Though she seemed a little annoyed, she still gave Sasuke a loving smile. It was a little odd for Sasuke, having a second Sakura look at his like that. He figured it was because he was a Sasuke. Shrugging, Sasuke sipped his tea before eyeing her.

"You too seem very close," Sakura spoke up after sipping the tea she was given. "How long have you two been together?"

The pink haired Jinchuuriki glanced at Sakura and raised her stub of an arm. She seemed almost amused.

"This idiot wouldn't refuse to leave me, so after I blew our arms off I finally admitted I loved him. That was when we were 17. We're 19 now," Haruno explained, glancing at Uchiha.

"If losing an arm made you come home, it was worth it," Uchiha said with a small shrug. "I've loved her since we were kids, however. Stubby here refused to believe this, seeing as how I was placed on the team to help her control the Bijuu sealed inside her." Haruno rolled her eyes at his words, scoffing.

"No offense, but your clan has always tried to ruin my life," she pointed out. "Of course, you, Shisui and Itachi were the three I could always trust. The rest..." She paused, narrowing her eyes at the memories.

"The clan's hurt more than just you, my love," Uchiha pointed out before finishing his tea.

Sakura was curious to know what they were talking about and so, after clearing her throat, she carefully chose her words.

"What exactly happened to the two of you? If...I mean, if you don't mind me asking. You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but...Well, I noticed Itachi seemed angry with Fugaku when we were there earlier. You guys don't seem very fond of him."

Uchiha and Haruno glanced at each other before the Jinchuuriki scoffed.

"Would you be fond of the person that allowed you to suffer in silence?" she questioned.

"My father can be a real bastard, as long as it means the clan still looks good," Uchiha added.

"What happened..?" Sakura asked quietly. When the Uchiha heir looked down, unable to meet her gaze, Sakura frowned. "You can talk to me," she promised.

Uchiha shifted a little and rubbed his lotus necklace between his index finger and thumb as he stared down at the tea.

"I was...hurt...then almost killed, back when I was eight years old," he finally began. "If it wasn't for Itachi and Shisui finding me when they did, I wouldn't be alive today." After a small pause to figure out what to say, Uchiha gave a small nod and let out a soft sight. "I suppose I could tell you."

 **Sasuke smiled happily as he walked through the compound. He had just gotten back from training with his cousin Shisui and was now making his way home. He was tired and hungry and just wanted to go to bed. He was happy, though. He had finally managed to use the Grand Fireball Jutsu! With Shisui's help and encouragement, Sasuke was finally able to get the jutsu to work. And it was amazing! The heat of the fire had caused steam to rise from the lake. Sure, it wasn't nearly as powerful as what Shisui or Itachi could do, but Sasuke was finally making progress. He was supposed to, though, right? He was going to be the leader of the clan one day!**

 **Sasuke was pulled from his thoughts as he bumped into something hard, falling back with a grunt. When he looked up, he smiled shyly at the man he had run into. The man seemed tall to Sasuke, though most adults did. He figured he was around the height of his dad, though this man didn't seem as fit. Sasuke didn't see a headband on the man and figured he wasn't a ninja. He had dark hair like most of the clan and a small scar across his mouth. For the most part, the man seemed pretty normal to Sasuke.**

 **"I-I'm sorry, sir, I wasn't paying attention," Sasuke apologized as he got up, dusting himself off. When he looked up again he found the man staring with an odd smile. "Uh...Can I help you, sir?" he questioned.**

 **"Oh, I'm sorry for staring. It's an honor to meet you. You are Sasuke, yes? Fugaku's boy, the boy who will one day be our leader?" the man asked with a wide grin, an odd look in his eyes that Sasuke didn't recognize. He thought the man was just being nice.**

 **"Yeah, that's my dad!" Sasuke agreed happily. "He's the best!"**

 **The man paused for several seconds, shifting from foot to foot as if he was trying to decide something. Finally, he muttered something under his breath that Sasuke didn't catch.**

 **"Huh? Did you say something?" Sasuke asked, tilting his head to the side. "Who are you, anyway?"**

 **"Oh, I'm sorry! How rude of me! My name is Itsuwari. I knew your father years ago!" Seeing Sasuke visibly relax at this, Itsuwari smiled more. "Say, you look exhausted. I bet you were training, weren't you?"**

 **"Yeah! Shisui-san helped me, and I was finally able to use Grand Fireball Jutsu! Though...I think I used too much chakra...I don't feel too good," Sasuke admitted before shrugging, rubbing his stomach.**

 **"Hungry? If you want, I could give you a snack to hold you over until you get home! Would you like that?"**

 **Hearing his stomach growl, Sasuke glanced down.**

 **"Well...I am pretty hungry...You said you knew dad?" Sasuke finally asked, looking up again.**

 **"Yep! We haven't spoken in quite some time, but I knew your father very well. He changed my life, after all!"**

 **If Itsuwari was such good friends with his dad, Sasuke thought he could trust him for sure!**

 **"I guess it would be fine," Sasuke agreed finally with a smile. Itsuwari motioned for Sasuke to follow and soon the two were heading toward his house, Sasuke rubbing his stomach quietly as he followed close behind.**

 **Several minutes later, Sasuke stood outside the man's house with a sandwich. He ate quietly. He was starting to feel better now that he had food in his stomach. But with another bite, Sasuke no longer distracted by his hunger, he noticed an odd taste to the food.**

 **"Mr. Itsuwari, this tastes kind of funny..." Sasuke said quietly. He frowned when he began to feel dizzy. Did he train too hard earlier..? "I don't feel too good...I think I need to get home..."**

 **"Oh, you aren't going anywhere, you fucking brat," Itsuwari said angrily.**

 **Sasuke stared with wide eyes, shocked by the man's sudden change in attitude.**

 **"W...What?"**

 **"Your father ruined my life. Now, I'm going to ruin his," he replied and gave Sasuke a dark smirk. "Don't worry, boy. They'll find you."**

 **Sasuke tried to run, but fell as the dizzy feeling grew worse. His vision blurred and the last thing he saw before passing out was Itsuwari laughing.**

 **When Sasuke woke up again he heard a loud banging sound. He felt sore all over and after looking down he found his clothes were dirty and torn, a sick feeling in his stomach. As his vision cleared, he managed to focus on the banging sound. It seemed as if it was coming from the front of the house. Too tired to sit up, Sasuke just remained on the floor crying. Was Itsuwari really going to kill him..?**

 **These thoughts left his mind, however, when he finally heard voices.**

 **"Where is he?!"**

 **Itachi..!**

 **"Where's my brother?!" Itachi yelled, his voice angrier than Sasuke had ever heard it. Sasuke heard a grunt of pain as someone was slammed into a wall. "Shisui, search the house," Itachi shouted.**

 **It took Shisui only a few seconds to find Sasuke. When he saw Sasuke, he gasped and kneeled down by the boy.**

 **"Sasuke..? Oh, Sasuke..." Frowning, Shisui called out to Itachi, "I found him! Itachi, come quick!"**

 **Itachi was by Shisui's side in seconds. When he saw Sasuke on the floor, bruised and dirty, his Sharingan slowly began to change. It reminded Sasuke of when Shisui's Sharingan looked different. What was it called..? Man...gekyou?**

 **"Sasuke..." Itachi whispered. "Shisui...Take Sasuke outside...I need to have a talk with this man..."**

 **"Itachi..." Shisui began. At Itachi's look, Shisui simply picked Sasuke up and walked away with him, holding the crying boy close. "I'm sorry, Sasuke...I didn't know this would happen. I promise, I will never let you get hurt again."**

 **Inside, Itachi turned to face Itsuwari. He had a look of pure rage in his Mangekyou eyes.**

 **"What are you going to do, huh? Get your father to arrest me again?" Itsuwari asked before laughing.**

 **"No..." Itachi began. "I'm going to make sure you pay for what you've done."**

 **All Sasuke heard was screams of agony after that. When Itachi walked outside finally, his face bloody, Sasuke looked over slowly.**

 **"Sasuke...I'll never let anyone hurt you again. No matter who they are, I promise I will stop them," Itachi promised his crying brother, taking him from Shisui's arms. He hugged the young Uchiha gently as the three traveled, heading home to get medical help**

"That night was the first time Itachi killed without hesitation," Uchiha said after finishing his story.

"I made a promise," Itachi pointed out before sipping his tea with a frown.

"You and Shisui have kept that promise," Uchiha agreed. "And I owe you more than I could ever repay."

Itachi simply shook his head.

"You never owed me anything, little brother. I'll always be there for you and you know that."

The group became silent then, simply enjoying their tea. Sasuke was the first to speak again several minutes later.

"And you? Why do you hate Fugaku?" he asked, glancing toward Haruno.

"The Uchiha clan isn't as perfect as Fugaku wants people to believe. When I was younger, two Uchiha men decided they'd take their anger out on me. Using their Sharingan, they put me through torture using Genjutsu. Because of this, I lost control of Kurama and almost attacked the village. Sasuke, Shisui and Itachi calmed me in time, however, and Sasuke killed my torturers," the pink haired Jinchuuriki explained with a scowl. "Fugaku covered it up, of course. Just like he covered up what happened years ago to Uchiha. Wouldn't want to tarnish the Uchiha name."

Sasuke opened his mouth to speak, but shut it when the door flew open. Youta Uchiha ran in, looking excited. He ran over to Uchiha and Haruno, smiling widely at them.

"Sakura-san! Nii-san! You guys are back!" he shouted happily and hugged Uchiha tightly before grinning at Haruno. The Jinchuuriki chuckled and smiled back, ruffling the boy's hair.

"While our guests are here, we're going by 'Uchiha' or 'Tsuki' for me and 'Haruno' or 'Taiyo' for her," Uchiha explained to his little brother before smiling. Youta paused for a moment before nodding. He turned his attention to Haruno and smiled shyly.

"You remember our promise, right?! My test is tomorrow!" Youta pointed out.

"I remember, buddy, don't worry. If you become a Genin tomorrow, you can have my old headband as promised," Haruno promised and shook her head, an amused smile on her face. When she looked up, she saw Shisui enter the home.

"Sorry we're late. Youta refused to quit training until he got the Transformation Jutsu correct," Shisui greeted and took a seat at the table by Haruno. The two glanced at each other for a moment before Shisui chuckled and leaned over, kissing her lips once before sitting back.

At the kiss, Sasuke and Sakura froze and simply stared.

"Uh..." Sakura began.

"Is something wrong?" Haruno asked, one brow raised in confusion.

"You...just...kissed Shisui..." Sakura pointed out slowly.

"Well, yes. I love him," Haruno replied. Sakura glanced at Uchiha, though the heir didn't seem as if anything was out of the ordinary.

"Hold on, you're with both of them?" Sakura asked.

"Aren't you yourself in the same situation?" Haruno shot back with a smirk. "Aren't you traveling with Indra AND Sasuke?"

"Indra..?! Whoa, no, we're not like that. I love Sasuke, not Indra!" Sakura shouted and clenched her teeth.

"Technically, they're the same person," Uchiha commented with a small shrug. "Is there something wrong, Sakura?"

"I don't love Indra," Sakura muttered. "So she's with Shisui, too, though?" Sakura asked, seeming curious. She quickly calmed down from the accusation of loving Indra. The thought was ridiculous to her. How could she ever love such a cold, cocky bastard..?

"Shisui is one of the few people I fully trust. And one of the few Uchiha I trust at all," Haruno explained. "He's done a lot for us. It just happened one day," she admitted before glancing at Youta. "But that's not exactly a story to tell right now. Anyway, Youta, why don't you show me the results of your training?"

Youta, excited to show of his skills, quickly nodded and stepped away from the table before putting his hands together. He focused his chakra, and after a puff of smoke he transformed into Itachi.

"I'm Itachi Uchiha. I'm the best in the clan, and I'll easily back up those words," he said calmly. He soon was grinning again though, unable to stay serious.

"Good transformation, but I don't think I sound like that," Itachi complimented.

"Well...No, you don't..." Youta admitted as he ended the jutsu. "But you're still one of the best! You, nii-san and Shisui-sensei could stop anyone!"

Itachi just smiled at his little brother.

"You'll definitely pass this time," Haruno said after giving a nod.

"This time?" Sasuke asked, raising a brow. "Has he taken the test before?"

"Er...Well...This will be my third try," Youta admitted shyly, cheeks turning pink. "I'm doing much better now, though! Ever since Shisui-sensei took over training me, I'm doing better!" he promised, seeming embarrassed.

"Who trained you before?"

"Oh..well...Dad tried training me," Youta said slowly. "But I didn't do too well..."

"Youta's a good kid, he just needed a gentler hand," Shisui explained to Sasuke. "Fugaku was trying to get Youta to learn the Grand Fireball Jutsu. We explained he wasn't ready for that, but Fugaku didn't listen. 'He is my son!' he said." Shisui sighed softly.

"I'll learn it someday..!" Youta complained and crossed his arms, looking upset. Haruno ruffled his hair again and offered the boy a gentle smile.

"Don't worry, buddy. I believe in you. You'll be a great ninja someday if you want. You don't have to be a ninja if you don't want to though, you know," she explained gently and chuckled when Youta quickly shook his head.

"I'm gonna be the best ninja one day, just like you!" Youta promised, his mood instantly better once his best friend reassured him. Sakura couldn't help but smile as she watched.

"He seems like a good boy," Sakura agreed. "Very happy."

"Now I have a question," Uchiha suddenly said, getting Sakura's attention right away.

"Yes?"

"I'd like to meet Indra-sama. Do you think this would be possible? It'd be an honor to meet the father of the Uchiha clan."

Sakura glanced at Sasuke before chuckling a bit.

"I mean...It's not really up to me. I don't control Indra. But if you'd like to meet him, he's at your house. Likely resting in his room."

"He seemed drained from stopping our fight earlier," Itachi explained to his brother. "But I'm sure he's fine now. We can go see him now."

With that, Itachi stood and looked toward Youta, offering the boy a smile.

"And then I'd like to see more of your progress."

With that, the group left Itachi's house and went over, arriving in only a few minutes. When they arrived, Itachi motioned down the hall toward Indra's room.

"His room is down there. Sakura? Do you think you could go get him?"

Sakura paused for a moment before sighing and nodding.

"Yeah, no problem," she agreed with a nod before walking off.

 **"I'm so sorry," Indra whispered almost pleadingly as he began to dig. He dug two small graves before slowly setting the bodies inside. When the dirt was moved back into place, Indra stood leaning on the shovel, staring with a blank look in his eyes at the graves. He stood in the forest for over an hour, unable to make himself leave. His sorrow eventually turned to anger at himself, the Otsutsuki man letting out a scream as he threw the shovel at a tree. His three tomoe Sharingan spun quickly before it slowly began to change. It became a spiral design, his right eye bleeding as his Mangekyou was activated. Indra let out another scream as he began attacking the trees. Punches, kicks, whatever jutsu came to his mind, nothing around him was spared. When he finally stopped attacking, Indra fell to his knees in front of the small graves, blood dripping from his eye onto the dirt of his daughter's grave. "I'm so sorry..." Indra whispered again.**

 **When Indra finally left the forest hours later, the sun had set and he found his way back thanks to the light of the moon. When he stepped out of the forest, he had a blank look on his face and his Mangekyou in his eyes. He made his way to his wife and kneeled by her, speaking seriously and barely above a whisper.**

 **"This will never happen again, my Eternal Beauty. Nobody else will die from this day on and we'll no longer have to always be on the run." Indra paused and placed his hand on the ground, looking around. "We'll make a home here, and one day the name Uchiha will be known...We will have revenge..." he promised, pulling the woman into a hug. "The...graves...do you have names for me to put?" he whispered. Shachi was silent for several seconds before she gave a weak nod.**

 **"Their names will be...Akihiko and Megami..."**

"Wake up, Indra."

Opening his eyes slowly, Indra stared at the woman standing next to his bed. He stared in silence for several seconds, his expression softening.

"Shachi, my love..?" he whispered. "Shachi..." Pulling the woman to him, Indra kissed her lips softly.

Only to be punched hard in the head.

"Indra, you asshole!" Sakura shouted as she pulled away from the Otsutsuki man.

When Indra looked at her again, he now saw Sakura Haruno and not his wife Shachi Uchiha. His expression hardened again and he sat up, rubbing where Sakura punched him.

"Sakura. For a moment, I thought you were my wife," he admitted.

"I'm not your wife, Indra," Sakura muttered then sighed, rubbing her mouth. "So don't kiss me, got it? Anyway, the others wanted me to get you. They want to meet you." Seeing his expression, Sakura blinked. "You alright?"

"Another dream," Indra replied as he got out of bed. Though he felt drained earlier, he was starting to feel pretty good. His dream, though...Indra sighed softly and ran a hand through his long, thick hair. He had only just been revived and yet the dreams were still haunting him. He wondered if he'd ever get over his mistakes.

"Indra? We...Well, we can talk if you need," Sakura offered slowly.

Indra raised a brow at her offer but shook his head, stepping into the hall. "No amount of talking can erase my mistakes, Sakura," he pointed out. The two walked to the main room of the house where the others were waiting. When they entered the room the others looked over, Uchiha, Haruno and Shisui looking curious.

"It's an honor to meet you," Uchiha greeted while standing. "I've read everything we had about you, though I never thought I'd get a chance to meet you."

"You can thank Sasuke and Sakura," Indra replied, nodding toward the two.

"You've been dead a long time, right? Maybe we should have a battle to see if you're back to health," Haruno suggested.

"You're always ready for a fight," Uchiha commented but nodded and looked at Indra. "It would be great to fight you though, Indra-sama."

Indra crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes as he thought about it. It had been a long time since his last battle. He didn't want to be rusty, now that he was back.

"Hm, very well. The four of you can fight me if you wish," Indra finally agreed.

"Wait, what? The four of us?" Sakura asked. "I didn't agree to fight."

"It'd only be a fair fight if the four of you were together," Indra replied with a shrug. Sakura's eye twitched at his cocky response.

"Fine, I'll fight," she quickly agreed.

"Can I watch the fight?" Youta asked.

Shisui turned his focus to the boy and shook his head while pulling a scroll from his pocket.

"Actually, Youta, I have something I need you to deliver for me. If you could, that is."

Youta, never one to say no to his sensei, quickly nodded and took the scroll.

"What is it, Shisui-sensei?"

"If you deliver that in time, then I'll be able to be your official sensei when you pass your test tomorrow," Shisui explained with a grin. "I'm requesting to be your teacher. I figured it'd be best, since I've already been working with you."

Knowing he'd be Shisui's student was all Youta needed to know. After running to get his messenger bag, Youta came back and hugged Shisui tightly.

"Thank you, Shisui-sensei! I'll get it there right away!"

Shisui chuckled as the boy ran off.

"Now, that fight..." Itachi began. "You'll need an isolated location if this is a five person fight. My fight with Sasuke was intense, so I'm sure this will be as well. I think you should take it down by the lake. Not many people around at the moment, so you should be fine."

Soon, the group was down by the lake. Itachi had drawn a line on the ground near the lake. On one side, Sasuke, Sakura, Uchiha and Haruno stood. Uchiha and Sasuke already had their hands on their katana. Haruno cracked her knuckles, her chakra cloak forming, and Sakura got into a battle stance as well.

On the other side of the line, Indra stood alone. He placed one hand on his hip and stared at the others, his spiral Mangekyou forming in his eyes. Despite going against the four, Indra seemed pretty relaxed.

Itachi stepped out of the way, raising his hand. When he lowered it, the fight began.

Right away, Sasuke rushed forward with his katana drawn, Sakura rushing next to him. Sasuke thrust the blade toward Indra's face as Sakura aimed a kick at his ribs. Indra leaned back to dodge the blade, the bridge of his nose getting cut. Before Sakura's kick landed, a golden Susanoo arm form and caught her foot, tossing her back to the others. After wiping the blood from his nose, Indra did a few quick handsigns before slamming his hand down. A large dragon made of stone burst from the ground and flew at Uchiha and Haruno. Uchiha threw a kunai in the air and used his Rinnesharingan to made it and Haruno switch places. With her in the air, Uchiha used a Susanoo arm to throw himself out of the way. He did handsigns in the air, the same handsigns Haruno was doing. The two released a massive blast of water directed at Indra. Sasuke, seeing this, quickly did handsigns before extending his hand. He shot a Chidori Spear at the water, the lightning fusing with it. Before it hit, though, Indra sank into the earth, leaving behind his stone dragon to take the hit. Haruno, Uchiha, Sasuke and Sasuke regrouped then, eyes scanning the battlefield for Indra.

The Otsutsuki man burst from the ground in the middle of their circle, grabbing Sasuke and Haruno by the throats. He slammed them together before kicking off of Sakura's back into the air where he did more handsigns, letting out a massive ball of fire. Haruno quickly got up and scoffed as she made large chakra arms catch the ball of fire.

"Come on, aren't you supposed to be legendary?!" Haruno taunted. "Madara put up a better fight than this!"

Still in the air, Indra smirked as he did a single handsign. The ball of fire burst into a cloud of scorching steam. Haruno, acting quickly, covered Uchiha in a cloak of chakra. Sasuke acted just as quickly, shielding himself and Sakura with the rib of his Susanoo.

When Indra landed, he shook his head.

"No holding back them, hm?" he called to the group.

"Bring it, Otsutsuki!" Haruno shouted cockily.

"Very well," was all Indra said.

Slamming his hand down, vines shot from the ground and began trying to wrap around each of them. They moved quickly, keeping out of reach of the vines. As they were busy with the Wood Style attack, Indra made a single clone. As Indra did one set of handsigns, the clone did another. Soon, Indra took a deep breath and let it out. Using Wind Style, Indra sent a tornado at the group. While he did this, his clone added fire to the tornado. It burned the earth beneath it as it traveled toward the group, turning the air around them hot.

Seeing his attacks, Haruno quickly destroyed the vines with chakra arms before she grabbed the others and hopped onto the lake. Indra had the flaming tornado follow them, steaming the water underneath it. Sasuke, Uchiha and Haruno quickly did handsigns before shooting jets of water at the tornado, turning it to a cloud of steam before it reached them. With the steam as a distraction, Sasuke grabbed Sakura and made an invisible clone with his Rinnesharingan. The clone moved quickly behind Indra and once in place, Sasuke teleported himself and Sakura to it, the clone switching places with them. Behind Indra, Sakura quickly slammed her fist into his back, launching the Otsutsuki man into the cloud of steam.

"Uchiha, Haruno, heads up!" Sakura shouted.

But when the steam cleared, Indra was yet again nowhere to be seen.

"Do you guys see him?" Sakura called out.

"Not yet," Haruno shouted back as she looked around.

In the sky, Indra stood on the shoulder of his golden Perfect Susanoo.

"Hm, working together now? Good," Indra called down to them. Sasuke formed his own Susanoo, him and Sakura on the head. Haruno formed the chakra body of Kurama and she and Uchiha stood on the head. Seeing the Susanoo and body of Kurama, Indra smirked and shook his head. "Allow me to show you a jutsu my wife created."

Once again, Indra did the handsigns quickly, his Susanoo doing them for him. Indra took a deep breath and shouted, "Fire Style: Dragon God Jutsu!" As if he had used Summoning Jutsu instead, a dragon, made purely of fire, appeared. It let out a roar as it flew overhead before it dived down at the group, its tail slamming into Sasuke's Susanoo hard enough to make him stumble. Haruno made one of her tails of chakra help Sasuke balance before she watched the dragon.

"Okay, I'm impressed," she admitted. When the dragon came around again, she grabbed the tail as tightly as she could and pulled hard. The dragon roared as if annoyed and turned back, slamming its head against the Kurama cloak. It knocked Uchiha and Haruno over, the two still on the head. Then, it took to the sky and opened its mouth, steam coming out before it let out a stream of fire focused on Haruno.

Sasuke had his Susanoo rush over to Haruno and Uchiha and stood in the way, back to the flames. He shielded them from the fire, though even with Susanoo he could feel the intense heat and felt uncomfortable. But after a few seconds Sasuke noticed the flames were fading. Looking up, he watched as the dragon disappeared. He looked up toward Indra and saw the man was smirking.

"I'm going to end this now, hm," Indra decided.

At first Indra simply stared at the group. But then, his Mangekyou spun quickly. Haruno's chakra cloak slowly faded away and Sasuke's Susanoo disappeared as well. Indra hopped down and landed on the lake in front of the group, his right eye bleeding badly from using his Mangekyou. He panted softly as he clutched at the eye as a sharp pain shot through it. Using this moment of distraction, Sakura and Haruno rushed up to him and punched him in the chest, sending him flying. Indra slammed onto the dock and spit up blood. He had a furious look in his eyes as he sat up.

"I don't know how you got rid of my chakra cloak, but I'm not done fighting just because you say it's over!" Haruno shouted with her fist raised.

Indra got to his feet as he wiped the blood from his eye. He rubbed his chest where the two had hit him, looking pained for a moment before he seemed to relax.

"Then I'll force this to end," Indra decided with a shrug. He quickly slammed his hand down on the dock. Once again, vines shot up and began attacking the group, shooting at them. They worked together to avoid being hit or grabbed, and while they were busy with that Indra hopped off the dock toward them. He rushed Sakura, slamming his fist into her stomach before spinning, kicking her in the side. She stumbled into Sasuke and two vines slammed into them. They slammed into the dock with a grunt of pain but quickly got up, rushing Indra again. But before they could reach him, they froze in place, unable to move. They remained motionless, Indra staring at them, then suddenly flew back and slammed into the dock once more. Indra's eye bled as he watched them and once they hit, the Otsutsuki man clutched his eye again as he turned to Uchiha and Haruno.

Indra did a few quick handsigns before letting out a stream of fire from his mouth. The two easily dodge the attack and rushed him from the sides, but before they could attack Indra's Susanoo arms grabbed them tightly and slammed them into each other several times. He then threw them to Sasuke and Sakura, the four crashing into each other before sinking into the water. Indra began to smirk, but stopped when he was grabbed from behind by Sasuke.

"You must still be weak if this is all you can do," Sasuke mocked the older man. Indra narrowed his eyes and grabbed Sasuke's arms, flipping the man over him. He attempted to kick Sasuke's face but Sasuke caught his foot, sending a powerful stream of electricity through his leg. Indra stumbled back and fell to one knee, his leg numb and unable to move. Despite this, Indra didn't seem worried and simply slammed both hands down. This time, large wooden tendrils shot out of the water and wrapped around Sasuke's wrist, ankles, torso and throat, holding the man in place. Indra made them tighten on Sasuke for a moment, keeping eye contact, before he loosened them, making the wooden vines let the man go. Sasuke coughed as he fell onto the water but quickly looked up and used his Rinnesharingan to pull Indra to him. When Indra reached him, Sasuke pierced through the man's body with his Chidori. Blood dripped from Sasuke's hand.

"Did you really think it would be so simple, hm?" Indra questioned.

The two were how the were seconds before, the wooden vines wrapped tightly around Sasuke. Indra had captured Sasuke in a Genjutsu the moment they locked eyes. With the help of a clone, Indra stood up and walked to Sasuke. He studied his Rinnesharingan before shaking his head.

"Never call me weak, my heir," Indra warned before punching Sasuke in the face. The vines tightened before throwing Sasuke to the side. Limping to shore with the help of his clone, Indra looked toward the others and summoned his full Susanoo once more. "Are we done?" he asked them. "Or shall I show you more of Shachi's jutsus?"

The group glanced at each other. Sasuke was rubbing his jaw, Sakura sitting next to him as she rubbed her ribs. Uchiha and Haruno stood next to each other, making no move to attack.

Itachi, having watched silently the entire fight, finally spoke up.

"Indra-san, they aren't your enemies. There's no need to use all of your power in a simple spar," Itachi pointed out.

"I haven't, or they'd be dead," Indra replied, crossing his arms, his right eye shut from pain.

"You really are cocky," Sakura said under her breath as she gently placed a hand on Sasuke's jaw, working on healing him.

"Thank you," Sasuke murmured.

When the others made no move to fight him, Indra slowly uncrossed his arms and looked toward Itachi.

"Very well, we'll continue this later."

Uchiha, after making sure the others were okay, walked over to Indra.

"Perhaps we should get food now," he offered. "A warm meal after a battle is always a good way to relax."

At the offer of food, Indra slowly nodded.

"Do you have bear?" he questioned.

"Well...no, not that I know of. But I'm sure we can find somewhere to eat. I'll pay for everyone. Itachi, will you be joining us?" Uchiha looked to Itachi and offered a smile. "You could bring Izumi so the others can meet her. I'm sure she'd like to meet Indra."

Itachi thought it over for a bit before nodding.

"That sounds good. We'll see you in a bit."

After Itachi walked away, Uchiha and Haruno waved and began walking.

"We'll see you guys in a bit, we need to shower before we go," Uchiha explained, leaving Indra, Sakura and Sasuke alone. Indra watched Sasuke and Sakura for a moment before placing his hand over his eye. Sakura watched him for a moment and after she finished healing Sasuke, she slowly went over to Indra and motioned for him to sit.

"I can make your eye feel better," she offered. Indra watched her for a moment, seeming as if he didn't want her help, but finally sat down by Sasuke.

"I'm going to head back now," Sasuke said as he stood, rubbing his throat where Indra's jutsu grabbed him. "I'll see you soon, Sakura. Do you need anything or..?"

"I'm fine, Sasuke-kun. I'll finish healing Indra then we'll head back," Sakura promised with a smile. Sasuke nodded before walking off, leaving Indra alone with Sakura. She wiped the blood away from Indra's eye before placing her hand over it, her hand glowing green as she begin to ease his pain. "So...Why was your eye bleeding?" she asked, trying to avoid an awkward silence.

"My Mangekyou ability is very powerful," Indra replied. "I haven't used it in a long time, being dead. I'll handle it better the more I use it."

"What exactly can you do? Cancel out attacks? You made Sasuke's Susanoo disappear."

Indra was quiet for a moment before he glanced over at the damage to the dock. He focused on it and slowly the wood began to repair, soon in perfect condition once more.

"You can...Fix things, or..."

"My eyes have the ability of time," Indra explained. "Even at my full power, I rarely used it. There's no thrill in winning that way."

"If you have that kind of power, can't you fix terrible things that have happened? Like the massacre, or-"

"Some pains have to happen, Sakura," Indra interrupted. "If you change one thing, too much is different. Fix one mistake, no matter now small it seems, and an entire clan might not exist," he explained, shaking his head.

"Your wife...Shachi..." Sakura began.

"Sakura..." Indra said in a warning tone, narrowing his eyes.

Sakura became quiet then, focusing on healing his eye.

"I want to ask something," Sakura finally said.

"Then ask."

"I promised Sasuke I would learn the Grand Fireball Jutsu," Sakura said with a frown. "But I don't know if I even can. My chakra natures are Earth and Water, after all. So how could I possibly learn it?"

"Sakura, you are my wife's reincarnation. I can feel her chakra, even now. Shachi had Earth, Water and Fire. Her most used was Fire Style, actually. You are connected to her, just as Sasuke is to me. Your connection to her will allow you to learn the jutsu and many more, if you so wish."

"I...want to ask you another thing, Indra. A...Request."

Indra looked at the woman once she pulled her hand away from his eye. He blinked a few times before relaxing, the pain no longer distracting.

"Very well."

"I...Want you to teach me," Sakura decided with a nod, a serious look on her face. "I promised Sasuke I would learn the jutsu, and learn more about his clan. You're the best person to help me with that."

Indra was silent for several seconds before he spoke.

"I've never had a student," he pointed out.

"I'm not taking no for an answer, Indra," Sakura warned as she clenched her fists.

Indra smirked.

"You remind me of Shachi. She never backed down or took no for an answer. Hm, very well, Sakura. I will take you to be my student." Before Sakura could respond, Indra added, "But it will not be easy. I will not hold back on you. Your enemies won't, so neither shall I."

"I was the student of Tsunade Senju. I can handle whatever you throw at me, Indra!" Sakura promised.

"Don't ever say the Senju name around me, Sakura," Indra warned as he stood, glaring down at the pink haired woman. Sakura frowned, nodding as she stood as well.

"Okay, sorry?"

"The Senju scum ruined my life long ago," was all Indra would say before he began walking, Sakura walking next to him. "And it's Indra-sensei now," he added.

"Okay, Indra-sensei. Won't mention the name again," Sakura promised. When the two made it back to the house, Sakura turned her head, looking up at the tall man. "Indra-sensei, you should shower as well. Wash the blood off."

Indra paused mid step and looked at her.

"Shower?" he asked, raising a brow. "What is a 'shower'?"

Sakura stared at her new sensei in silence for several seconds. At first she thought he was joking, then quickly remembered how old he really was.

"Uh...right. Showers are where you get clean," Sakura explained.

"I enjoy the hot springs," Indra replied with a shrug.

"Showers have hot water," Sakura pointed out.

"Hm, very well, I'll try this 'shower'," Indra agreed. Sakura lead him to the bathroom and showed him the shower, quickly explaining how to use it. When she finished, she looked back at him and smiled.

"Any questions?"

"What kind of jutsu makes it work?"

"It...There are no jutsus involved, Indra-sensei."

"How boring," Indra muttered but nodded. After Sakura gave him a towel, Indra stood alone in the bathroom, simply staring at the shower. After studying it with his Sharingan for a bit, Indra walked up to it and turned it on, setting it to the hottest setting like Sakura showed him. He watched quietly as the water sprayed from the showerhead and after a moment he finally stripped out of his dirty clothes and stepped in. Feeling the water spray against his skin felt odd to Indra, who was used to relaxing in the hot springs. He hummed a little as he watched the water but soon just decided to get it over with.

With his wild hair, it took Indra over an hour to finish his shower, the water cold by the time he got out. When he left the bathroom, wearing the clothes he had on earlier, Indra bumped into Sakura.

"Indra? You took forever."

"Indra-sensei," he corrected. "And my hair is the cause. Usually Shachi would help, but she hasn't come back yet."

"Right. Indra-sensei. Anyway, the others are waiting. Shisui should be here soon."

Indra followed her silently, the dirtiness of his clothes slowly going away as they went out to the living room.

"Couldn't you just change to new clothes?" Sakura questioned as she watched him use his Mangekyou once again.

"Don't have any," was all Indra said as he took a seat on the couch, sitting next to Itachi and his wife. "Hm, you must be Itachi's wife," Indra commented.

"Hello, Indra-san," Izumi greeted with a slight bow of her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Indra opened his mouth to reply when Shisui finally entered the room. After a moment, Indra noticed the man looked stressed and was holding a note.

"Shisui? What's wrong?" Itachi questioned.

"Itachi, Youta's been kidnapped!"


	10. Mar

Indra stood at the gates of Konoha. He held the ransom note in his right hand, staring down at it. His Sharingan spun in his eyes as he read the note. After reading it over for the third time, he crumpled it up and dropped it. Sakura stood behind him, inside the village, watching him with a frown. The others had stayed behind, as requested in the note. Only two people were to go to the meeting place to pay the kidnappers. If anyone else went, Youta would be killed. Itachi had argued with him at first, but in the end Indra decided he and Sakura would be the ones to go. Sakura as the medic. And Indra...Well, he had his own reasons.

"Let's go, Sakura. Youta's waiting for us."

As the two walked, Indra glanced over at his student. She had a scroll, which contained the money, hanging at her hip. She carried a bag on her back, full of medical supplies. If things went according to plan, they wouldn't be needed.

"Indra-sensei, where are we meeting them?"

He glanced away from her bag and locked eyes with her. She stopped walking as he stared. She counted to three in her head before sighing.

"Sensei."

"You really do remind me of my wife." He studied her for a moment longer. "According to the note, we're going to a small village a few miles from here. We're supposed to meet them at a bar, then they'll take us to Youta." He began to walk again, Sakura soon at his side. When he was sure they were still alone, he turned his focus to his student. "We won't be paying them, though," he said after a moment, eyeing the money at Sakura's side.

"Indra-sensei, if we don't pay them..."

"Don't question me," Indra interrupted. "Just listen for once and follow along."

It didn't take the two long to arrive at the little village. Indra stopped at the entrance and studied the place with a cold, calculating look before he gave Sakura a nod. "Let's find the bar."

It wasn't hard to find the right place. With how small the village was, there was only one bar to go to. Inside, the bar was dark, the lights dimmed. Smoke filled the air and a crashing could be heard as a man fell onto a table, breaking it in one hit. Indra had a goofy grin on his face as he took Sakura's hand and took her to sit at the bar with him. She almost didn't follow, but then decided to not complain and just play along.

"What can I get you?" the bartender asked. He eyed Indra and raised a brow as Indra grinned at him.

"Gosh, I'm sorry! I'd like a shot of whiskey, please. Honey? What would you like?"

Sakura stared at Indra. It was weird to her, seeing him look so happy for once. She actually found herself wishing she could keep him in that mood, though she reminded herself he was only acting. "Uh, just a shot of whiskey," she agreed with a nod to the bartender.

"We're waiting for someone. Would it be alright if we waited for them here?" Indra asked. He downed his shot of whiskey and coughed. He rubbed his throat as his eyes began to water. "Wow, that's some good whiskey!"

The bartender narrowed his eyes. He gave Sakura her drink before he set another shot in front of Indra. "If you're going to stay here, you'll have to drink."

Indra eyed the whiskey with wide eyes. "Oh, I don't think I'd be able to drink too much more," he protested and chuckled. When the bartender narrowed his eyes, Indra drank the second shot of whiskey. He wobbled a little and even giggled as he leaned against Sakura for balance, his forehead pressed against her shoulder.

"You can wait," the bartender agreed as Sakura sipped her second shot. "I'll make a quick call."

When the man had walked away, Indra pulled away from Sakura and sat up straight. He looked at his empty shot glass and set it down before he looked at Sakura. He studied her, his features softening and becoming less goofy. "Sakura..." He shook his head and looked down at the bar, tapping his thumb against the wood. "This shouldn't take too long." He cleared his throat, the burn of the whiskey irritating him. He hadn't had a drop of alcohol in a very long time. Even when he had been alive originally, his wife had refused to let him drink. One little incident and suddenly alcohol was banned from their home...

He had to stop thinking about Shachi.

When he looked up again, his goofy smile back, the bartender had returned. He held a small piece of paper in his hand. It had a few quick notes scribbled down, giving them exact directions on where to find the kidnappers. Indra glanced at the paper, wobbling a little as he read. He then put it away and got up with Sakura, the pink haired woman paying before following Indra out of the bar.

Once outside, Indra's cheerful act faded. He pulled the note out and looked it over before handing it to Sakura. "Let's go get Youta."

The house Youta was being held in was on the outskirts of the small village. It wasn't a large house, but it was the best looking in the village. Indra and Sakura stepped up and went to knock, but before they could the door cracked open.

"Yes?" a deep voice asked behind the door.

"I'm sorry to trouble...trouble you," Indra began with a hiccup. "We're supposed to be meeting someone...? We brought..." Indra's voice lowered. "The money?" It looked like Indra could barely stand on his own. Sakura held him by the arm as she waited. The man at the door watched for several seconds before letting out an annoyed sigh.

"Right. The brat. Hurry in, and don't try anything funny. Unless you want the kid to die."

The two were lead into the house by the guard. They were taken to a large open room with a few couches and chairs. Sitting on the middle of one of these couches was a young man. He had long white haired tied back into a pony tail, his face clean shaven. On his right cheek was a large scar and his eyes were red. He looked pretty thin to Indra, though he knew looks didn't matter.

"I am Yahiro Nobuo. Lovely of you to join us. I thought for sure we'd end up having to deal with that brat. Please, sit."

Sakura and Indra walked over (or stumbled, in Indra's case) and sat on the couch in front of Yahiro. Indra looked around the room and only noticed more of Yahiro's men. There was no sign of Youta.

"Where...Where's the...boy?" Indra asked with a hiccup.

"Right to business? As you wish. The boy is upstairs. We had to tie him up. Little brat kept trying to escape." Yahiro glanced at the money pouch at Sakura's hip and smiled. "Oh, good. You brought the money?"

"That depends...I'm not giving you anything until we know Youta's actually alive." Sakura crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "If he's hurt..."

Yahiro snapped his fingers. The man that let them in moved to his side without hesitation and kneeled. "Go get the boy, brother," he ordered. The man nodded and left the room, walking upstairs. Glass shattering could be heard followed by a yelp of pain.

"Get off of me! Lemme go, you punk!" Youta shouted.

Yahiro's brother soon walked down the stairs with Youta over his shoulder, the young Uchiha squirming around. When Youta saw Sakura, his struggling stopped and he even began to laugh. "You're gonna get your butt kicked now! Sakura-san is gonna break your legs!" He let out a grunt as he was dropped by the couch. Indra looked at the child, his Sharingan spinning slowly. Youta's chakra seemed calm, so he wasn't under control. Other than a few bruises and a busted lip, the boy seemed fine.

"He won't stop babbling about you," Yahiro muttered. "It's getting rather annoying. Kid thought you were going to swoop in and save him."

"Sakura-san could beat you in a fight!" Youta shouted as he sat up and rubbed his bruised cheek. "She could take on all of you!" He let out another pained yelp as Yahiro smacked the back of his head.

"I told you to shut up, boy," the man warned. His focus then returned to Sakura and Indra. "You've seen that he's alive. Now, will you pay?"

Sakura started to hand over the money when Indra grabbed her arm and shook his head.

"You kidnapped an Uchiha. What were you planning to do with him? Why him specifically?" Indra asked. He leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. "I should kill you right now for even laying a hand on that boy." Indra shot forward and pinned Yahiro to the couch. He wrapped a hand around his throat, slowly tightening. Despite the danger he seemed to be in, Yahiro only looked amused by Indra's threat. "What's so amusing?" he asked while leaning back to sit by Sakura.

"Do you think I don't have a plan? Killing me won't help you bring this brat home. In fact...I doubt any of you will leave this village alive." Yahiro watched as Youta got up and sat next to Sakura, the Uchiha child rubbing his head. He watched as the pink haired medic's hands began to glow green before she began healing the wounds.

Indra held out the bag of money and dropped it at Yahiro's feet before he stood, motioning for Sakura and Youta to follow. Before they even made it out of the room they heard screams from outside.

"What was that, Sakura-san?!" Youta shouted. His eyes widened and he hid behind Sakura as a man crashed through the wall and landed by Yahiro's couch. Half his body was burned and his left arm was crushed.

"That? Oh, that's right...There was something I forgot," Yahiro said and chuckled. "I have a little surprise for you. It's something me and my brother found recently during...business."

"Do you have any idea who we are?" Indra asked as he turned to Yahiro. He grabbed Sakura by the arm and raised her hand. "This woman alone is powerful enough to murder you before you leave this room. Yet you want to threaten us as we're about to leave?" His focus turned to Youta. Though the boy's wounds were healed, he still look terrified. "Not only do you threaten us...But you hit an Uchiha child?" He let go of Sakura's arm and narrowed his eyes. His three-tomoe Sharingan slowly transformed into his spiral Mangekyo Sharingan as he took a step toward Yahiro. The screams outside were getting closer now, and Indra could smell smoke.

"I know exactly who Pinky is," Yahiro muttered. "Disciple of the Fifth Hokage. Helped start the war that took countless lives." He stood from the couch. "Our mother was one of those lives." He briefly glanced at his brother before shaking his head. "You have two options...You can come after us, or you can deal with the issue outside."

Sakura watched as her sensei's rage turned to genuine confusion. The Otsutsuki man turned to the broken wall and walked to it, hopping outside. He remained motionless for several seconds before he spun around. "Sakura, get Youta out of here!"

"Indra-sensei? What's going- Indra!"

Sakura's entire body went cold at what she saw. The same monster than had attacked her and Sasuke now slammed Indra into the ground. Indra's body sank into the ground and the man shot up behind the fire creature, though before he could move away he was hit once more. The monster punched his chest and sent Indra flying. Before he crashed into another house, his Susanoo formed partially around him to ease the impact.

"Sakura, take Youta!" he shouted as he stood. Already the monster was rushing him. He slammed his hands down and thick vines broke through the earth and wrapped themselves around the monster's arms, torso and legs, barely holding it in place. The vines began to tear and soon the beast ripped free. It was on him in a second, fists raised to attack.

"Get the girl!" Yahiro ordered the monster. It froze mid attack and turned, rushing Sakura instead. She grabbed Youta and jumped outside, running as fast as she could with the child in her arms. Indra was by her side in seconds. He looked at her quietly before turning and slamming his hands down. A massive wall of wood erupted from the ground and blocked the monster off. The wall ruptured just as soon as it went up and the monster grabbed Indra by the face, throwing him out of the way before advancing on its new target. Sakura stomped her foot and created a crater in hopes of slowing it down, tossing Youta out of the way so he wouldn't get hurt.

"Sakura-san, I can help!" he shouted. Indra appeared in front of him and wiped blood from his mouth.

"Run, Youta. Find your brothers," Indra ordered. Without waiting, he hopped back to Sakura and pushed her out of the way of a hit. The beast's punch hit his chest, cracking several bones. He grabbed it with a miniature version of his Susanoo and threw it in the air. He did several quick handseals before taking a deep breath. He shot several balls of water from his mouth as a wooden clone appeared and did the same, only the clone used lightning. Both attacks hit the monster and shattered its body, sending it crashing down into the crater Sakura made. He landed by her and watched as the pieces began to pull back together. His Mangekyo spun as he stared at the body. As fast as the pieces pulled together, they were suddenly ripped apart once more. Indra focused on the body until his eyes began to bleed from the effort of using his Mangekyo. When he looked away, he grabbed Sakura and jumped back right as the monster launched at them. "We need to get away from the village before anyone else is hurt..." he murmured as his Sharingan faded from his eyes.

"Indra-sensei, I can protect myself! Let me help you!" Sakura protested. When he refused to put her down, she glared at him. "Put me down!" The monster was quickly gaining on them. Before it could touch them, though, Indra turned his head and activated his Mangekyo in one eye. The monster crumbled before them, the pieces rolling backwards into the crater. Indra closed his eye and shook his head.

"If you die..." He stopped running and looked down at her with his open eye, his vision blurring from the pain. "I can't let you die. I'd be a terrible sensei," he murmured. He finally put her down and even smiled at her.

"Why are you being so stubborn?!" she shouted. She grabbed him by the arm with all her strength and began to drag him with narrowed eyes. "We either both run, or we both fight. Do you have a death wish?"

 **Indra watched the clouds from his spot in the grass. His wife lay next to him, the two holding hands as they relaxed. He was actually smiling a little.**

 **His focus shifted to Shachi when the women sat up and looked down at him. She was quiet for several seconds longer before she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.**

 **"I don't blame you anymore for what happened, my love," she began. "What happened to me...What Ashura had his people do...I know it wasn't your fault." She gently cupped his face. "I will love you forever, my love," she said before kissing his lips. "No matter what, I will always be there for you."**

"I do," Indra whispered to Sakura. "Shachi...our clan..." He shook his head and wiped the blood from his eyes before he grabbed her hand and began to run. "That monster won't stop coming after only thing we can do is get out of here, this world." As they ran, Indra created a single clone to distract the creature. He then picked Sakura up once more and hopped high into the air. His Susanoo partially formed beneath them and they landed on it. They were carried away from the small village, headed for Konoha. The two landed soon after leaving the small village when they saw Youta running.

"Sakura-san! You survived!" the boy shouted. He ran up and hugged Sakura tightly. "You too, Indra-san! We gotta get outta here! That monsters gonna catch up if we don't hurry!" He let go of Sakura and climbed onto the Susanoo with a little help. "I wanna go home, please!"

The group made their way back to Konoha without another word. The entire trip back, Sakura watched Indra with a frown, Youta sat quietly for once and Indra focused on keeping the Susanoo summoned. They landed again in the Uchiha compound in front of Youta's home. The boy hopped off and ran inside after hugging Sakura tightly and Indra moved to follow when his wrist was grabbed tightly.

"Are we going to pretend you didn't admit you want to die?" Sakura asked. "Indra-sensei, if you want to talk about it, I'll be there for you..."

Indra hummed a bit as he pulled his arm free. "We'll discuss this later, Sakura. I think it's more important we get out of here first chance we get." He paused and stared into her eyes. "I need rest, so please get Sasuke ready."

"Indra-sensei..." Sakura sighed and walked inside. She found the others with Youta. Mikoto was checking her son as Taiyo Sakura healed any leftover bruises. Sasuke sat on the couch in silence and looked up as Sakura approached. "Sasuke...We have to leave this world. That monster we fought...it's here and it won't stop until we're gone."

Sasuke glanced at Itachi and the others. Now that Youta was safe, he knew they would need to head out anyway. They had a lot they still had to do before their journey was over. Still, that didn't mean he was eager to leave his alternate-reality family. An idea came to him though and he nodded at Sakura. "Alright, Sakura. But there's somewhere I want to go."

"Anywhere, I promise, but we have to leave."

Sasuke stood from his spot on the couch and went to her side. "I want to figure out who Mar is. We're going to Orochimaru."

Mikoto pulled away from Youta and went to Sasuke, hugging him tightly. "If you have to leave, we understand. Just know you are always welcome here", she promised when she pulled away. "From this world or some other, you are my son." She returned to checking Youta and Itachi stood from the couch.

"I hope we meet again someday, Sasuke," he said with a small smile. "Just do me a favor, alright? You have a lot of anger, try to get that under control."

Sasuke thought about his fight with Itachi and nodded once.

"Goodbye, little brother," Itachi said as he poked Sasuke s forehead.

"Maybe we ll see each other again," Sasuke replied.

When they were finally finished saying their goodbyes, Sasuke stepped outside with Sakura and found Indra sitting, leaning against the house. When he saw the blood on his face, he raised a brow. "Did you hit him?" he asked Sakura.

"Indra-sensei overused his Mangekyo getting us out of the village. That fire monster attacked us...He ll be fine after some rest."

Indra stood. "Where are we headed?"

"Orochimaru has someone named Mar," Sasuke said as he opened a portal. "I'll get us as close as I can to his base."

Indra looked at the portal before glancing at Sakura and Sasuke. He saw the seal they placed on each other and reached out. With a small burst of chakra, he removed it from both of them. "You don t need that ridiculous seal to show your love, Sasuke," he muttered before stepping through the portal.

"He's so cheerful, isn't he?" Sakura joked before stepping through the portal. Sasuke sighed then followed behind.

The group found themselves several feet from the base's door. Sasuke stepped forward, looking around as he approached, then kicked the door in as he unsheathed his katana. He could hear shouting as soon as he stepped inside. A few of the walls inside were burned and a few people, knocked out, could be seen on the floor.

"Where the hell did the experiment get to?!"

"Who let Mar escape!"

"Did he kidnap Karin?!"

Sasuke, Sakura and Indra rushed to the nearest person, one of Orochimaru's scientists from the looks of it.

"What happened here?" Indra asked.

"The experiment, Mar, somehow escaped his room when Lord Orochimaru left," an older blonde woman quickly explained. "We believe he's on the other side of the compound with Karin now."

"Mar sounds like a dangerous man," Indra murmured. "We'll help you recapture him, I suppose. Sasuke had questions." The blonde woman stared at Indra like he had three heads. "Yes?"

"Nothing, just...Whatever, just get him!"

"What can you tell us about this man?" Sakura asked. Once again, the blonde woman gave them a weird look. "How dangerous is he?"

"Well...when Lord Orochimaru wasn't...testing...him, he'd have Mar torture the failed experiments. So, he knows how to kill..." The woman trailed off. "And he definitely doesn't like any of us."

"Why was Mar torturing people?!" Sakura shouted.

"Lord Orochimaru has been trying to break Mar for quite some time now and thought that would work..."

Indra began to walk down the hall, the others quickly following. He scanned their surroundings with his Sharingan, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. When they reached the end of the hall, they came to a stop in front of a large metal door. "Is he through there?" he asked. The doctor nodded and stepped away. "We'll manage from here, then."

The moment Indra stepped through the door, three wooden spikes dropped from the ceiling. He jumped forward to avoid being impaled and watched as Sasuke summoned the rib cage of his Susanoo to shield himself and Sakura. He stood and brushed himself off, his eyes narrowed. "Looks like this Mar person has been busy."

"We're not really going to help these people, are we?" Sakura asked. They're with Orochimaru. We shouldn't just hand them Mar."

"We're not helping them," Sasuke assured as he began walking again. "We're getting Mar out of here, whoever he is."

A soft tapping sound could be heard through the dark compound followed by a loud cracking. They followed the noise, and trail of scientists, until they found a large doorway. It was blocked off by several wooden spikes made from broken chairs, coming up to around Indra s hip. Sakura easily kicked through the small wooden defense and stepped through. Inside, they found Karin standing in the corner with a horrified look on her face.

"Karin? What's wrong?" Sakura whispered. "We're going to get you out."

"I...I swear, I had no idea..." Karin whispered with tears in her eyes.

"Karin? What is it?" Sakura took a step closer.

Before Sakura could reach Karin, a small child dropped from the ceiling. He screamed, thrusting a scalpel at her. She caught the boy and threw him off, grabbing the blade from him before he could attempt another attack.

"Mar, no! They're not with Orochimaru!" Karin shouted.

Everyone in the room froze and stared at the young boy, who seemed no older than five. He wore muddy clothes that were too big for him. His hair was unwashed and his body was covered in grime. He had a few cuts and bruises, as well as a few scars. He backed away from them as they approached and tried to run when Sakura reached for him. He was easily caught though and struggled, looking down as he began punching at the pink haired woman.

"Who the hell is this boy, Karin? Why does Orochimaru have him?" Sasuke demanded.

"He's...a clone, Sasuke."

"A clone? Of who?"

When the boy looked up at Sakura once more, he had the Sharingan in his wide eyes.

"Madara Uchiha," Karin answered softly.


End file.
